Crypto assets dedicated to decentralized finance (DeFi) have collectively hit $1 billion in market capitalization.
DeFi is designed to give people an alternative to traditional banking services such as borrowing and lending by using platforms that are decentralized, lack control by middlemen and utilize smart contracts to automate transactions.
At time of writing, the total market cap for all listed tokens on DeFiMarketCap, an analytics website that shows the market cap of 230 tokens underpinning DeFi, is $1,068,714,105.
Ethereum-based protocol Maker dominates the pack with a market cap of $295,878,527.
It’s followed by 0x with a market cap of $171,252,000, and Synthetix Network Token with a market cap of $120,956,075.
Top 10 DeFi Tokens by Market Cap
1. Maker $295,878,527
2. 0x $171,252,000
3. Synthetix Network Token $120,956,075
4. Kyber Network Crystal $99,496,766
5. Dai $67,088,504
6. Compound Ether $47,113,112
7. Compound USD Coin $43,449,838
8. EthLend Token $28,802,718
9. Compound Dai $24,563,280
10. Aave Interest bearing LINK $17,061,808
TD Ameritrade recently joined the Chicago DeFi Alliance (CDA), a new group aiming to support companies that are working to build decentralized finance products.
But the space also has its share of critics. Litecoin creator Charlie Lee says he believes DeFi platforms are ultimately centralized, citing an attack on the Ethereum-based bZx protocol. To reverse the damage from the attack, the bZx team decided to use an admin key to pause the network.
“This is why I don’t believe in DeFi. It’s the worst of both worlds. Most DeFi can be shut down by a centralized party, so it’s just decentralization theatre. And yet no one can undo a hack or exploit unless we add more centralization. So how is this better than what we have now?”
