A recent chart from Token Terminal offers a powerful visual breakdown of the protocols currently dominating crypto capital, measured by Total Value Locked (TVL) — and the results show an increasingly consolidated landscape.
Unsurprisingly, stablecoin issuers dominate the chart, controlling the largest share of locked capital in the crypto ecosystem:
- Tether (USDT) alone holds $151.2 billion, accounting for a staggering 43.8% of total TVL.
- Circle (USDC) follows with $58.3 billion, or 16.9% of the total.
Together, these two players alone represent over 60% of the capital in crypto, reflecting stablecoins’ central role in DeFi, trading, and cross-border settlement.
Lending and Liquid Staking Gain Ground
- Aave, the leading DeFi lending protocol, controls $36.5 billion (10.6%), solidifying its dominance in the lending vertical.
- Lido Finance, the top player in liquid staking, holds $23.2 billion, or 6.7% of the total.
These protocols show that capital is also heavily concentrated in credit markets and staking infrastructure, which are key to DeFi functionality.
DEXs and Other Protocols Round Out the Space
Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) like Uniswap, Curve, and others represent a smaller but essential portion of the ecosystem. Additional categories, such as derivatives, bridges, and asset management tools, make up the “Other” category, indicating a more fragmented landscape in emerging areas.
Capital in crypto is far from evenly distributed. The top stablecoin issuers and core DeFi protocols currently control the majority of liquidity, underscoring their systemic importance — and the risk that comes with centralization.
As the crypto economy grows, so will the battle for capital dominance.
Kosta Gushterov
Reporter at Coindoo
Kosta has been a part of the team since 2021 and has solidified his position with a thirst for knowledge, incredible dedication to his work and a “detective-like” mindset. He not only covers a wide range of trending topics, he also creates reviews, PR articles and educational content. His work has also been referenced by other news outlets.
Source: https://coindoo.com/list-of-protocols-that-control-the-capital-in-crypto/