Decentralized perpetual futures exchange Grvt has integrated the Aave lending protocol so traders can earn yield on margin collateral while keeping perpetual positions open. The feature is intended to reduce the opportunity cost of collateral that typically sits idle on trading venues. Perpetual futures are crypto derivatives that track an asset’s price and do not expire.
“On most platforms, your capital can only do one thing at a time,” Hong Yea, CEO of Grvt, told Cointelegraph. “Your stablecoins are either earning yield or available to trade, but not both.” The integration lets users deposit once and use the same capital as active margin while earning lending returns.
The announcement comes as derivatives remain a major source of fee generation across DeFi. Data from DefiLlama show DeFi protocols have generated more than $1 billion in quarterly revenue in recent periods, with derivatives exchanges contributing a large portion. On X, DefiLlama’s head of revenue and growth, Patrick Scott, wrote that onchain businesses are finding product-market fit.
Capital efficiency becomes a competitive focus
Perpetual futures traders typically post stablecoins as collateral and leave them parked to meet margin requirements. At launch, Grvt said the feature applies to USDT collateral, which is tokenized 1:1 against deposits deployed into Aave’s lending pools.
“When liquidation happens, we take over their positions and liquidate just like it would happen with USDT,” Yea said. Grvt says funds can be withdrawn from Aave within about 10 minutes to service redemptions.
Returns come from Aave’s variable lending markets and will fluctuate based on borrowing demand. Yea said Grvt does not capture any portion of the Aave yield “as of now,” and users may receive both lending returns and a share of platform fees.
Curve founder Michael Egorov has argued DeFi protocols need real revenues tied to economic activity rather than emissions-driven yields, underscoring a broader shift toward sustainable revenue models in the space.
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