List of questions about [DeFi]

The digital air within the Aave ecosystem crackled with tension this week. A governance vote—more than a mere poll, but a bitter clash of ideals—had just concluded, leaving a proposal in tatters and the community divided. At its heart was a fundamental question: Who truly owns the soul of a decentralized giant?

The answer, for now, is a resounding not yet.

The defeated plan sought to transfer Aave's brand assets and intellectual property to its decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). Its failure was not an endpoint, but a detonation—one that forced Aave's founder, Stani Kulechov, to step into the fray with a sweeping manifesto for the future. This isn't merely about next-quarter features; it's a blueprint for an existential evolution.

The Crossroads: From DeFi Niche to Financial Colossus

In a decisive post to the community, Kulechov framed this moment as a critical juncture. The message was clear: resting on the laurels of being a premier DeFi lending protocol is a path to obsolescence. The future he paints is audaciously expansive.

He envisions Aave bursting beyond the confines of crypto-native lending, stretching its tentacles into the vast, untapped oceans of real-world assets (RWAs)—a market he frames as a staggering $500 trillion opportunity. The blueprint also includes forging pathways for institutional capital and crafting consumer-facing financial products that could bring DeFi to the masses.

This is a vision of Aave not just as a tool for the cryptographically savvy, but as a foundational layer for a new, open global financial system.

The Golden Carrot: Rewriting the Token's Value Proposition

Perhaps the most electrifying revelation for AAVE tokenholders was the promise of a transformed value model. Kulechov declared that Aave Labs plans to distribute non-protocol revenue directly to tokenholders.

This move is revolutionary. It proposes to shatter the current paradigm where the token's utility is largely governance-based. Imagine fees from new institutional services or RWA ventures flowing not just to the treasury, but into the pockets of those who steward the network. It’s a powerful gambit to align long-term incentives and supercharge the token's fundamental appeal.

Governance in the Crucible: The Fight Over Fees and Influence

The catalyst for this grand vision was a bruising governance battle, revealing deep fissures beneath the surface. The conflict centered on a seemingly technical issue: who should capture the revenue generated from token swaps routed through Aave’s interface via services like CoW Swap?

Was this income rightfully belonging to the collective DAO, or should it remain with the core developers at Aave Labs? The vote became a proxy war over control, transparency, and the very meaning of decentralization.

Adding fuel to the fire were murmurs about Kulechov's recent personal purchase of $15 million worth of AAVE tokens. Critics saw a play for voting power; the founder rebuffed it as a pure signal of personal conviction. This episode laid bare the perennial, thorny dance between founder influence and decentralized governance.

The Path Forward: A Phoenix from the Ashes

Unfazed, Kulechov has already signaled the next move. A new governance proposal is being drafted to revisit the issues of intellectual property and brand rights—a direct response to the community's pushback. This time, however, the conversation will be framed within the context of his expansive new strategic universe.

The subtext is potent: let us move beyond internal skirmishes over slices of today's pie, and focus instead on building a pie so vast it could redefine global finance.

With over $45 billion in value locked within its smart contracts, Aave is already a DeFi titan. But the week's events prove that even titans must evolve or risk being chained to the past. The bitter vote was not a conclusion, but a chaotic opening act. The next act will determine whether Aave becomes a footnote in the history of decentralized lending, or the foundation for something immeasurably larger.

The community’s voice has been heard, loudly. Now, they are being asked to look not at their feet, but at the horizon. The stakes, for Aave and for DeFi, have never been higher.

The transition marks one of the most significant tokenomic updates in Pendle’s history and reflects a wider trend across DeFi: simplifying governance, improving liquidity, and lowering barriers for everyday users.

Why Pendle Is Moving Away From vePENDLE

Pendle’s original governance system was built around vePENDLE, a vote-escrow token that required users to lock their PENDLE for long periods of time. While the model was intended to encourage long-term alignment with the protocol, it ultimately created friction for most participants.

According to the Pendle team, long lock-up durations, non-transferability, and limited interoperability made vePENDLE unattractive to a large segment of users. Governance participation also required weekly engagement and a deep understanding of DeFi mechanics, which concentrated rewards among a small group of advanced participants.

This complexity became increasingly misaligned with Pendle’s expanding user base and growing total value locked, prompting the team to rethink how governance and incentives should function.

Introducing sPENDLE: A More Liquid Governance Token

The newly announced sPENDLE token is designed to address these shortcomings by introducing liquidity and flexibility into Pendle’s governance framework. Unlike vePENDLE, sPENDLE is a liquid staking and governance token that allows holders to exit their position with a 14-day withdrawal period, or immediately by paying a small fee.

This shift removes the psychological and financial burden of long-term lock-ups, making governance participation more accessible to both retail users and institutions. The Pendle team believes that lowering exit friction will significantly improve adoption and engagement across the ecosystem.

Staking for sPENDLE is set to go live shortly, while new vePENDLE locks will be paused ahead of a snapshot that will facilitate the transition.

Interoperability and DeFi Integration Take Center Stage

One of the most critical limitations of vePENDLE was its lack of interoperability. Because the token was non-transferable, it could not be used across other DeFi platforms, limiting its utility beyond Pendle’s own ecosystem.

sPENDLE changes that dynamic entirely. The new token is designed to integrate with multiple DeFi protocols, opening the door to use cases such as restaking, composable yield strategies, and broader liquidity participation. This aligns Pendle with a growing movement toward modular DeFi, where assets are expected to function seamlessly across platforms.

For traders and investors who already operate across multiple ecosystems, this change significantly increases the attractiveness of holding PENDLE.

A Simpler Governance Model Focused on Real Decisions

Pendle is also redesigning how governance itself works. Under the new structure, token holders will no longer be required to participate in weekly votes to remain eligible for rewards. Instead, governance participation will focus only on major protocol decisions, known as Pendle Protocol Proposals.

When no critical proposal is active, holders will automatically remain eligible for governance rewards without taking any action. This approach aims to strike a balance between meaningful decentralization and user convenience, ensuring that governance rewards are no longer limited to a small, highly technical minority.

Revenue Buybacks and Long-Term Incentives

To further strengthen the new model, Pendle plans to allocate up to 80% of its protocol revenue toward PENDLE token buybacks, which will then be distributed as governance rewards. This mechanism directly links protocol performance to token holder incentives, reinforcing long-term alignment without forcing users into rigid lock-ups.

With Pendle reportedly generating tens of millions of dollars in revenue, this buyback-driven reward system could become a powerful driver of sustainable value for holders under the new sPENDLE framework.

Pendle’s Position in the DeFi Market

Despite its governance challenges, Pendle has grown into one of the largest DeFi platforms by total value locked, ranking among the top protocols in the sector with billions of dollars secured on-chain. The governance revamp suggests that Pendle is now prioritizing scalability of participation, not just scalability of capital.

If successful, the sPENDLE transition could serve as a blueprint for other DeFi protocols struggling with low governance engagement.

Tracking PENDLE and DeFi Tokens on BYDFi

As governance innovation continues across DeFi, many traders prefer using flexible and advanced trading platforms to gain exposure to tokens like PENDLE. Platforms such as BYDFi provide access to a wide range of crypto assets, market analysis tools, and derivatives trading options, making them a practical choice for users looking to trade or hedge DeFi-related tokens.

For investors monitoring Pendle’s transition and broader DeFi governance trends, BYDFi offers a streamlined environment to track price movements, manage risk, and explore emerging opportunities without the complexity often associated with decentralized interfaces.

A Strategic Reset With Broader Implications

Pendle’s move from vePENDLE to sPENDLE is more than a technical upgrade—it is a strategic reset that acknowledges the realities of user behavior in modern DeFi. By prioritizing liquidity, interoperability, and simplified governance, Pendle is positioning itself for its next stage of growth.

Whether sPENDLE delivers the adoption boost Pendle expects will become clearer in the months ahead. However, one thing is certain: governance models that prioritize usability and flexibility are quickly becoming the standard in decentralized finance.

If you want to profit from price appreciation without the headache of AMM math, stick to traditional trading. Register at BYDFi today to buy and hold your assets on the Spot market with zero risk of divergence loss.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Does Uniswap V3 fix impermanent loss?

A: No, it actually amplifies it. Because Uniswap V3 uses "concentrated liquidity," the rebalancing happens faster within a narrow range, leading to potentially higher impermanent loss if the price exits your range.

Q: Is impermanent loss a fee?

A: No. It is an "opportunity cost." It is the difference between what you have now versus what you would have had if you just HODLed.

Q: Why do people still provide liquidity?

A: They are betting that the trading fees and token rewards (yield) earned over time will be higher than the impermanent loss suffered.