DeFi breaks all-time record: Active loans exceed $23.700 billion

Aave, Compound, and Morpho platforms are leading an unprecedented lending boom on Web3, offering returns that are double those of traditional investments. 

The revolution of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has reached a new milestone this 2025 with a record $23.723 billion in active loans, according to data published in the main crypto finance indicators on May 21. This historic record reflects the rapid acceptance and sophistication of the sector, driven by leading platforms such as Aave, Morpho y Compound, which have seen a substantial increase in liquidity and the use of credit mechanisms without traditional intermediaries. 

In parallel, the Total Value Locked (TVL) of the DeFi ecosystem recovers, falling just 6,4% below levels prior to the trade tariffs imposed by Donald Trump at the beginning of the year, demonstrating a solid recovery following the regulatory invocations and a market that is thriving in the face of volatility.

This phenomenon reveals an interesting behavior of users, who seek to optimize their portfolios through leverage, Staking and other profitable strategies in DeFi, contrasting sharply with the returns offered in traditional financial markets.

Historic record for active DeFi lending

The increase in active loans to $23.723 billion demonstrates unprecedented growth in the DeFi ecosystem. This expansion has been primarily driven by the increasing sophistication of lending products within decentralized platforms, as well as the diversification of accepted collateral, ranging from traditional cryptocurrencies like Ethereum to tokenized real-world assets. 

Since the end of 2022, open loans have grown by more than 959%, ​​reaching levels that surpass even the previous peak recorded in December 2021, as market data shows. 

The role of unlicensed credit and new modalities

Beyond traditional crypto-collateralized loans, formats such as flash loans and unsecured loans have become popular, allowing users to carry out quick and efficient transactions without compromising assets. stablecoins have played a key role in facilitating these transactions By offering stability and reducing the volatility inherent in other digital assets, this incentivizes greater capital movement and leverage opportunities.

This trend indicates that sophisticated traders are looking to leverage themselves to fund positions in major cryptocurrencies such as BTC y ETH, or to participate in liquidity mining strategies, thereby increasing their potential returns. 

However, experts have noted that despite the rapid increase in lending, the net collateralization ratio has remained stable or even declined slightly, suggesting that borrowers are optimizing the use of their collateral without necessarily increasing their total collateral base.

The evolution and recovery of TVL

TVL, an indicator that measures the total assets locked in smart contracts in the DeFi ecosystem, shows clear signs of recovery after a significant period of contraction. 

Although it fell by nearly 36% between February and April of this year, coinciding with the implementation and temporary suspension of new trade tariffs in the United States, the total value blocked recently reached $120.000 billion, recovering to just 6,4% below the level recorded before Trump's tariff policies.

The fact that active loans have surpassed all-time highs while the TVL remains somewhat stagnant may seem contradictory. However, this situation is explained by the increase in on-chain leverage: users withdraw collateral to obtain loans and reuse these funds in new transactions, thus keeping the TVL stable while lending activity accelerates. For experts, this could indicate greater efficiency in the use of invested capital and a strong appetite on the part of DeFi traders and strategists to maximize their returns through lending and leveraged positions.

Furthermore, the recovery in the prices of major cryptocurrencies and the improvement in credit market conditions have helped stimulate both the entry and retention of assets within the ecosystem, strengthening user confidence.

Investing in cryptoassets is not fully regulated, may not be suitable for retail investors due to high volatility and there is a risk of losing all invested amounts.