A decentralized lending protocol and exchange recorded unprecedented trading volumes of nearly $35 billion during the first quarter of 2025, as confirmed by a representative for the platform.
Trading activity saw an increase of over 13% compared to the first quarter of 2024, primarily driven by a rise in transactions, escalating from approximately 1.8 million to around 5.5 million in Q1 2025.
The impressive trading volumes for Q1 arise despite an overall downturn in the cryptocurrency market, with total market capitalization for cryptocurrencies declining by more than 20% year-to-date as of March 31, based on statistics from available market data.
Total value locked (TVL) trend over time.
Related: New yield-bearing stablecoin launched
Shifting DeFi Landscape
Since its inception in 2020, the platform has implemented various strategic initiatives in response to the evolving decentralized finance (DeFi) environment.
In June 2024, it introduced crvUSD, a stablecoin that serves as a means for distributing fees to tokenholders, replacing an earlier method that compensated holders with shares of the 3crv liquidity pool.
In November, a collaboration with a blockchain network was formed to facilitate the integration of BlackRock’s tokenized money market fund, known as BUIDL, into the DeFi space.
Looking ahead to 2025, the platform intends to streamline its lending markets into a unified interface and extend the time given to borrowers for closing their positions before facing liquidation.
The founder noted in March that he anticipates a transformation in decentralized exchanges (DEXs) towards specialized platforms catering to stablecoins linked to various currency values.
“Exchanges facilitating stablecoin transactions across different currencies like the euro and US dollar have yet to find effective solutions. The challenge of providing liquidity without incurring losses while maximizing earnings is an unresolved issue that will likely be addressed soon,” he stated.
Despite the surge in transaction volumes, the total value locked (TVL) on the platform is around $1.8 billion as of April 2, reflecting a decline from peak levels of about $2.5 billion at the beginning of the year.
The platform’s native token has a market capitalization of roughly $640 million at this moment, illustrating a decrease of over 40% year-to-date.
Related: Report on BTC miners adopting ‘treasury strategies’ and diversifying in 2024.