Aave, a prominent player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, has achieved a significant milestone, surpassing $40.3 billion in total value locked (TVL) on May 12, according to data from DefiLlama. This achievement underscores Aave’s robust position in the lending space, with its latest iteration, Aave v3, accounting for approximately $40 billion of this total.
In a recent post on X, DeFi analyst Jonaso highlighted Aave’s dominance, stating, “With these milestones, Aave is proving its dominance in the Lending Space.” TVL, a key metric in DeFi, reflects the total value of cryptocurrency deposited into a protocol’s smart contracts, serving as a barometer of a platform’s popularity and trust among users.
Aave’s journey to this record high follows a notable increase in Ether’s price, which has surged from around $1,500 to approximately $2,500 in the past month. This price movement has contributed to a substantial rise in Aave’s TVL, which climbed from about 6 million ETH at the beginning of 2025 to nearly 10 million ETH by May 12. Notably, Ether and its staking derivatives constitute nearly half of Aave’s TVL.
The recent surge in Aave’s native AAVE token, which has risen around 25% over the past week, reflects a buoyant crypto market and increasing user deposits. As Aave continues to attract significant inflows, its status as a leader in the DeFi sector is further solidified, marking a pivotal moment in the evolution of decentralized lending.
