Amount of Ether Locked in DeFi Is Growing Despite Price Slump

The number of Ether (ETH) locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) applications reached an all-time high of 2.7 million, according to DeFi monitoring resource DeFiPulse, and has been steadily growing since the end of June. 

Of the 2.7 million ETH locked, 2.1 million (77%) are locked in the system behind the DAI stablecoin, Maker.

Additionally, 337,800 ETH (12.5%) are currently locked in the decentralized lending application Compound. The remaining Ether is split between minor DeFi applications including decentralized exchanges and financial derivatives.

Ether locked in DeFi applications. Source: DeFiPulse

DeFi grows despite market conditions

The one-year chart of the dollar value of crypto assets locked in DeFi applications shows some correlation to the Ether price, but is not entirely dependent on it. When the Ether price collapsed after reaching its peak in July, the value of crypto assets locked in DeFi apps was only temporarily affected.

After falling with the Ether price in July, the value of assets locked in DeFi apps resumed its growth while the coin’s price continued to mostly fall. While the correlation between the two assets sharply decreased after August, the Ether price still affects the value of funds locked when looking at shorter timeframes.

Last week, the total value of assets locked in such apps decreased as the Ether price fell. As of press time, the value of those assets is $619.7 million, down from an all-time high of $675.6 million reported on Nov. 21.

The total value of crypto assets locked in DeFi applications. Source: DeFiPulse

As a whole, over 48% ($302.5 million) is locked in Maker, 23.8% in derivatives DApp Synthetix and 15.2% in Compound. The remaining 15.2% of locked funds are distributed between other applications.

The application that holds nearly half of all funds locked in DeFi apps, Maker, has recently undergone a major upgrade. As Cointelegraph reported on Nov. 18, Maker recently launched an updated version of its DAI stablecoin, which can now be backed by multiple types of collateral.