What ETHLend does

Aave (formerly ETHLend) is a decentralized, non-custodial liquidity protocol built on open-source smart contracts deployed across public blockchains, primarily Ethereum. Founded in November 2017 by Stani Kulechov and rebranded from ETHLend to Aave, the protocol enables users to supply assets to earn interest or borrow against overcollateralized positions, with all interest rates, collateral parameters, and code changes governed on-chain by AAVE token holders via Aave Improvement Proposals. The protocol has accumulated $3.46 trillion in lifetime deposits, $1 trillion in lifetime borrows, $88.44 billion in monthly volume, and $27 billion+ in active user funds, making it the most-used DeFi lending protocol and the first to cross $1 trillion in cumulative lending.

The company offers a multi-product suite: Aave App (mobile savings), Aave Pro (professional platform built on Aave v4 with multi-market architecture), Aave V3 (core protocol), Aave Kit (developer integration stack), Stable Vaults, and the GHO stablecoin. Revenue is generated via protocol fees captured on the spread between lending and borrowing rates, with the protocol having generated over $83 million in fees in the past 30 days. The platform serves a hybrid customer base: a long tail of individual DeFi users accessing Aave directly via the app, retail end-users reached through embedded integrations (MetaMask 100M+ users, Whop 21M+ users, Kraken, Cap, Ethena), and traditional financial institutions brought in through the Aave Horizon initiative launched in August 2024 (VanEck, WisdomTree, Securitize, J.P. Morgan's Kinexys). Six years of uninterrupted operation and SOC 2 Type 2 certification underpin its credibility with institutional counterparties.

Name

ETHLend

Website

https://ethlend.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Aave (formerly ETHLend) operates a decentralized non-custodial liquidity protocol on Ethereum enabling overcollateralized lending and borrowing for retail DeFi users, platform partners, and traditional financial institutions via integrated products and the Aave Horizon initiative.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Lending

NAICS

Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523)

SIC

Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)

akta.pro primary industry

Decentralized Lending Protocols (DeFi Money Markets) (FSADAFAB)

Keywords

• Decentralized lending
• Defi protocol
• Crypto lending
• Liquidity protocol
• Overcollateralized borrowing

Headquarters

HQ city

Chiasso

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Protocol Fees from Lending/Borrowing: Aave generates fees through the spread between lending and borrowing rates. Users pay interest on borrows while lenders earn interest, with the protocol capturing value through interest rate mechanisms.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

ETHLend (now operating as Aave) provides a decentralized, non-custodial liquidity protocol where users supply crypto assets to earn interest or borrow against overcollateralized positions via open-source smart contracts on Ethereum and other public blockchains. The platform is delivered through multiple products including the Aave App for retail savers, Aave Pro for power users, Aave Kit for partner integrations, and Aave Horizon for institutional adoption.

Product overview

Aave is a decentralized non-custodial liquidity protocol (originally launched as ETHLend in November 2017) that has evolved into a multi-product DeFi platform. The core offering consists of the Aave Protocol enabling peer-to-peer lending and borrowing, supported by user-facing products including Aave App (mobile savings application), Aave Pro (full DeFi experience with earn, borrow, and swap capabilities), and Aave V3 (the protocol infrastructure). Additional offerings include Aave Kit (developer integration stack for building on Aave), Stable Vaults (stablecoin-focused strategies), and GHO stablecoin. The platform operates across Ethereum and other public blockchains.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Aave App: Mobile application for savings, borrowing, and earning on DeFi
• Aave Pro
• Aave V3
• Aave Kit

Products and services

• Aave App

Quantifiable outcome

• $1 trillion in total cumulative lending achieved
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• VanEckcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024Traditional asset management firm brought into decentralized lending through Aave Horizon initiative in August 2024, representing institutional DeFi adoption.
• WisdomTreecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024Traditional asset management firm participating in Aave Horizon initiative, signaling bridge between conventional finance and DeFi protocols.
• SecuritizecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024Digital securities platform joining Aave Horizon to enable tokenized securities and traditional assets on Aave protocol.
• WhopcoreTechnology or Integration21M+ users platform with yield powered by Aave through Aave Kit integration. Whop uses Aave to enable users to earn yield on their holdings.
• MetaMaskcoreTechnology or Integration100M+ users accessing Aave-powered yield through MetaMask's integration with Aave protocol, enabling wallet users to earn on assets.
• EthenacoreTechnology or IntegrationReached $10B in 500 days using Aave protocol, creating dedicated Ethena Correlated market for USDe, sUSDe, and related tokens.
• KrakencoreTechnology or IntegrationMajor cryptocurrency exchange with ~60% lending market share using Aave protocol for DeFi Earn products.
• Kinexys by J.P. MorgancoreTechnology or IntegrationJ.P. Morgan's blockchain payment network validated institutional DeFi on Aave, marking major traditional finance validation.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ETHLend