A new annual high of $52 billion has been reached for the total value locked across decentralized finance protocols, a number not seen since the days leading up to FTX’s collapse in November 2022.
Given the turbulent history that dogged the industry after FTX and other companies like Terra, Three Arrows Capital, and Celsius collapsed and the events surrounding these players that created a great deal of uncertainty around both centralized and decentralized finance protocols, the resurgence is remarkable.
In recent months, both industries have exhibited indications of improvement. Specifically for DeFi, since the start of 2023, TVL has increased by 36% in dollar terms, from about $38 billion to its annual high of $52 billion.
Nonetheless, asset price volatility can have a significant impact on the TVL metric’s worth. The recent surge in the value of major cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether, along with consistently rising investment inflows, may be partially responsible for this.
The real-world assets (RWAs) specialty within DeFi saw a notable increase in 2023, particularly at MakerDAO, which incorporated about $2.5 billion in RWA collateral, mostly U.S. Treasury bills, to underpin its Dai stablecoin.
It also lessened its reliance on centralized stablecoins like USDC in this way. The value locked of MakerDAO has increased to more than $8 billion, accompanied by a rise in annualized revenue.
Additionally, Maker debuted the Spark lending protocol, which experienced a large influx of users in the second half of the year.
Also Read: ETH Staking Protocol Swell Sees 150% Surge In TVL This Month
