Value is returning to alternative chains, with growth for Bera, Sui, Aptos and Sonic

DeFi is growing on alternative chains, attempting to compensate for the slowdown of Ethereum and Solana. Value locked is growing for BeraChain, Sui, Aptos, and Sonic, as the chains offer decentralized activities and returns. 

DeFi is making a return in March despite the relatively weak market conditions. DeFi protocols carry over $96B in value, with Ethereum’s share slowly sliding to 53%. At the same time, new chains with more appealing apps and lending pools are rising up the charts. 

The most dramatic rise comes for Berachain (BERA) after three years of preparation and pre-launch hype. Once Berachain started onboarding users, its DeFi sector quickly expanded. 

Berachain increased its value locked by 15.76% in the past week, reaching $3.4B. The chain surpassed other legacy networks, mostly by its top three lending and DEX trading apps. The expansion of Berachain hinged on the value locked on Infrared Finance for liquid staking. KodiakFi and BEX  were the two top DEXs expanding their liquidity pairs. 

Berachain carried over $1.31B in stablecoins, leading to $128M in DEX volumes. The chain’s apps achieve around $67K in revenues, still showing a disparity between real economic activity and the value locked as collateral. 

With the recent value inflows, Berachain competes with Binance Smart Chain, which is now carrying $5.35B in locked liquidity. Berachain has already surpassed Base and is on track to reach the DeFi levels of TRON. The success of Berachain may signal there is still risk appetite in crypto, especially for chains with active growth.

Sonic reaches a new all-time high for inflows

The other chain to post records is the newly rebranded Sonic (formerly Fantom). The chain is on track to go above $1B in value, starting from just $25M at the start of 2025. 

Sonic receives most of its inflows from Ethereum. The recent launch of the chain means the network only brought in $28.27M in value. However, all the transfers came from bridged stablecoins, meaning Sonic is directly accruing liquidity for trading and lending. 

Sonic has already entered the top 15 of DeFi chains and is expected to have a trajectory similar to Solana. 

The chain’s growth comes from its Aave V3 lending pool, which expanded its assets by 51% in the past week. The chain is more widely used for lending and yield farming, with relatively small DEX. The recent DeFi growth focuses more on passive income, rather than new tokens, as traders aim to avoid outsized risk. Sonic is one example where a chain is growing based on its lending sector, instead of working as a token casino. Passive income apps have replaced active trading and ‘aping’ into tokens.

Sui and Aptos grow their influence

Aptos (APT) is becoming one of the go-to chains for DeFi lending. The chain carries over $997M in value locked, with the biggest share flowing into Aries Markets and Amnis Finance. 

Sui recovered its value locked to $1.28B, with the biggest inflows into Suilend and NAVI Protocol. Both of the lending protocols expanded their assets by over 15% in a single week. 

The trend of smaller chains growing their activity also tracks the general recovery of DeFi lending. Protocols now carry over $40B in total value locked, up from $38M in the past month. 

DeFi lending remains a proxy metric for the overall health and exuberance of the crypto markets. Rapid expansion of lending pools coincides with market tops, while liquidations and lending capitulation mark local lows. Currently, DeFi lending is in a recovery stage, with funds flowing to smaller networks. 

Lending protocols remain risky for liquidations, but the abundance of stablecoins and altcoins as collateral is still driving activity. Versions of Aave, Morpho, and Spark Protocol make the bulk of lending, but smaller chains also offer their native apps, supported by native stablecoin liquidity. While riskier, those decentralized tools are still chosen for their higher yield potential.

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