Behind the rebound of TVL, DeFi veterans are eliminating the "single-player mode" - ChainCatcher

Author: Scof, ChainCatcher

Editor: TB, ChainCatcher

In the past month, there seems to have been a structural change in the DeFi space. Unlike the previous situation where projects fought individually, some leading protocols are moving towards a "coalition" through cooperation, integration, and even direct binding of interests.

In this article, we approach from three aspects: the integration of lending and trading, the evolution of the stablecoin landscape, and the integration of RWA. We sort out the most representative "collaborative actions" currently and analyze the changes in logic and potential impacts behind them.

Lending + Trading: Interest Binding Between Protocols

The cooperation between DeFi protocols is evolving from superficial asset integration to deeper structural fusion. The recent collaboration between Uniswap and Aave is a representative example of this trend.

The core upgrade of Uniswap V4 is not about saving gas, but rather introducing the Hook mechanism. It allows developers to insert custom logic at key points in the liquidity pool (such as adding or removing liquidity, before and after trade execution), enabling whitelist control, dynamic fees, customized price curves, and even embedding game rules. This transforms Uniswap from a trading protocol into a more open liquidity underlying architecture.

Based on this, Aave plans to support Uniswap V4's LP Token as collateral for borrowing, and will return the interest portion of the stablecoin GHO lent to Uniswap DAO. The two form a substantial binding in terms of assets, functions, and returns. This collaboration enhances the capital efficiency of LPs and provides a more practically valuable template for the complementary relationship between protocols.

From the market data, this "herding effect" is releasing positive signals. Since May, Aave's TVL has risen from $19.708 billion to $23.347 billion, an increase of more than 18%. Uniswap's TVL has also grown by about 11% during the same period, rising from $4.178 billion to $4.65 billion. The simultaneous strength of both may not be a coincidence.

Stablecoins: A New Phase of Differentiation and Specialization

The competition in the stablecoin sector is no longer limited to "who is more centralized" or "who offers higher returns". More protocols are advancing stablecoin products towards specialized uses and structural layering.

Taking Ethena as an example, the most active stablecoin in its ecosystem is USDe, which is deeply integrated with Aave and supports a maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of 90%. However, since May, the total value locked (TVL) of USDe has dropped from $5.725 billion to $4.993 billion, a decrease of nearly 13%. Behind this, Ethena is launching another more conservative new product, USDtb.

Changes in the supply of USDe, source

USDtb is a non-yielding but fully collateralized stablecoin, with assets composed of BlackRock's tokenized money market fund (BUIDL) and USDC. The current on-chain supply exceeds $1.44 billion, with a collateralization rate maintained at 99.4%. Unlike the strategic hedging of USDe, USDtb is more like an "on-chain dollar," providing institutions with a reliable, non-volatile stable anchor. Especially when the market experiences negative interest rates, Ethena can transfer the hedging funds of USDe to USDtb to stabilize the entire asset pool structure.

The supply of USDtb, source: Dune

Another variable in the stablecoin landscape is USDT₀. This full-chain stablecoin launched by Tether in collaboration with LayerZero circulates based on the OFT protocol and has currently expanded to multiple chains such as Arbitrum, Unichain, and Hyperliquid. The TVL also grew from $1.042 billion to $1.171 billion in May. In contrast, its goal is not financial innovation, but rather to facilitate multi-chain liquidity and become stable "fuel" in DeFi.

The competition for stablecoins is no longer a one-dimensional efficiency battle, but has evolved into a structured and scenario-based product system. Products such as GHO, USDe, USDtb, and USDT₀ occupy positions in the fields of lending, hedging, security, cross-chain, and payments, reflecting that the stablecoin ecosystem is undergoing a reshuffle characterized by "functional specialization" and "clarification of application scenarios."

RWA: On-chain Coalition of Real World Assets

Once regarded as "ancillary to traditional finance," RWAs are now becoming strategic entry points for DeFi giants. Over the past few months, multiple protocols and organizations have formed a clear trend of collaboration around the tokenization of U.S. treasury bonds, and have begun to deploy them on-chain.

The most representative case is Arbitrum DAO. On May 8, the community passed a proposal to allocate 35 million ARB to three RWA issuance platforms: Franklin Templeton ($BENJI), Spiko ($USTBL), and WisdomTree. These three companies are heavyweight players in the traditional finance and asset management sectors, providing tokenized U.S. Treasury bonds as their assets. The funds are allocated through STEP (Stable Treasury Endowment Program), aiming to establish an on-chain stable and yield-generating treasury asset pool. According to official data, the first phase of the program has generated over $650,000 in revenue.

Aave's RWA platform, Horizon, takes a "use case-first" route. The main assets listed on Horizon are tokenized money market funds (MMFs), which institutions can lend GHO or USDC as collateral. This means that RWA is no longer just an investment target, but is actually integrated into the core functions of the DeFi protocol and becomes a transferable and loanable financial component.

Whether it's DAOs, lending platforms, or infrastructure providers, RWA is now seen as a key path to achieving real on-chain returns, connecting with traditional finance, and enhancing user confidence.

DeFi is not about sticking together for warmth, but about collaborative evolution

On the surface, the alliance between this round of DeFi protocols appears to be a collaboration born out of "track anxiety," but in terms of actual structure, it resembles a systemic integration and reconstruction.

These changes are not merely functional expansions, but upgrades in the collaboration methods between protocols. They signify the next phase of DeFi, which will evolve from isolated single-point tools to an interconnected and interdependent financial network system.

For ordinary investors, the focus may not be on whose TVL is higher, but rather on which combination structures are more stable, more efficient, and better able to navigate through volatile cycles. Banding together does not equal price increases, but it may very well be the foundation for the next round of growth.