Curated DeFi vaults grew to $11.29B TVL (+39% YoY) but face concentration risk with 5 managers controlling ~69% of assets.
DeFi & Yields ·
Curated DeFi vaults have expanded to $11.29B in total value locked, growing 39% over the past year even as the broader supply-side DeFi ecosystem contracted by 41.8%. This divergence underscores the appeal of managed vault strategies during a period of wider market uncertainty. Research from vaults.fyi tracks this shift and highlights structural concerns alongside growth.
The concentration of assets presents a material risk to the sector. Five curators control approximately 69% of all curated vault TVL, and many vaults hold overlapping underlying positions, amplifying exposure to shared market moves. This degree of manager concentration narrows the diversity that typically characterizes decentralized finance.
Investors evaluating curated vaults face several unresolved trade-offs. While high advertised yields attract capital, the research notes that collateral quality, manager discretion, and redemption mechanics warrant closer scrutiny than headline APYs alone. The extent to which these concentration risks will constrain future growth, or whether new entrants will fragment manager dominance, remains to be seen.