Another DeFi lender has called it quits.
ZeroLend announced Monday that it is winding down operations after three years, with founder “Ryker” saying the protocol had become unsustainable. The core issue was not a single exploit or market crash, but a slow bleed
Several of the layer 2 networks ZeroLend operated on saw activity and liquidity dry up, while some oracle providers stopped supporting those chains altogether. That made it harder to run lending markets reliably, and revenues failed to keep up with costs.
At its peak in November 2024, ZeroLend held nearly $359 million in total value locked. That figure has now collapsed by about 98% to roughly $6.6 million. The ZERO token fell another 34% in the past 24 hours and is down 99% from its 2024 high.
This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.
Subscribe here to get these updates in your email for free
Users are being urged to withdraw funds, though some assets remain stuck on thinly traded networks. The team says it plans contract upgrades to help redistribute stranded liquidity. For token holders, however, the project’s closure appears final.
Disclaimer: The information on this page may come from third parties and does not represent the views or opinions of Gate. The content displayed on this page is for reference only and does not constitute any financial, investment, or legal advice. Gate does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information and shall not be liable for any losses arising from the use of this information. Virtual asset investments carry high risks and are subject to significant price volatility. You may lose all of your invested principal. Please fully understand the relevant risks and make prudent decisions based on your own financial situation and risk tolerance. For details, please refer to
Disclaimer.
Related Articles
Pi Network Major Transformation: 210 Ecosystem Applications Deployed, 23k Developers Ready
The Pi Network ecosystem is accelerating its transition, with more than 210 active applications and 23,000 developers actively participating in Pi Studio, spanning multiple areas such as payments, community engagement, education, and gaming. The ecosystem’s diversity shows indicators of healthy development, and developers’ engagement is driving ongoing application optimization. In the future, improving the usefulness of the mainnet will be a key challenge, including issues that need to be urgently addressed such as scalability, security, and user adoption rates.
MarketWhisper1h ago
Bittensor founder accuses former brother of betrayal; TAO’s sudden plunge sparks 9.1 million liquidations
Bittensor co-founder Jacob Steeves accuses Covenant AI’s Simon Dare of intentionally causing damage to the agreement, leading to a sharp drop in TAO tokens. Steeves proposes a locked-staking mechanism that uses on-chain code to enforce commitments and prevent founders from making sudden, surprise exits. Even as the crisis unfolds, Bittensor’s open-source architecture can still ensure the agreement continues to operate, and it is set to hold a meeting to introduce the new mechanism.
MarketWhisper1h ago
Scroll team manually increased the fee-rate parameters; users were overcharged with fees exceeding $50,000 within four days.
Ethereum Layer 2 network Scroll saw roughly 139,000 transactions have excess fees of more than $50k because the manual increase in the gas price multiplier led to higher transaction costs than expected. The actual cost was far above the forecast. The incident sparked widespread questions about its subsidy strategy, and Scroll’s TVL also fell sharply to $24 million.
GateNews1h ago
Aave DAO uses a 75% approval victory framework, routing protocol earnings to the governance treasury.
Aave DAO has passed the “Aave Will Win” framework, allocating $25 million to Aave Labs, and confirming that all brand application earnings will be fully directed into the DAO treasury. It will reform its governance structure by replacing bureaucratic procedures with a results-oriented approach. Future agreement revenue is expected to reach $140 million. Funding for each specific product still requires a separate proposal review.
MarketWhisper2h ago
BNB Chain Flags Critical Update Ahead of April 28 Hard Fork - U.Today
The Osaka/Mendel hard fork on BSC will launch on April 28, requiring node operators to update to BSC v1.7.2. The upgrade enhances block construction, transaction handling, and introduces a gas limit cap for improved network stability.
UToday2h ago
Aave Founder Unveils AWW Strategic Blueprint: Centered on $AAVE , Targeting a $1 Trillion Protocol Scale
Aave founder Stani announced on a social platform that Aave will pivot to $AAVE as its core token, with all revenue flowing back to the DAO treasury. In the future, it will launch a debit card and financial technology experience, aiming to increase the protocol’s scale from $40 billion to $1 trillion, positioning it as a foundational market for traditional financial assets.
GateNews2h ago
