Curated lending vaults have grown to approximately $9B in total value, with three major vault managers controlling $6.8B.
DeFi & Yields ·
Curated lending vaults have accumulated approximately $9 billion in total value, with three managers—Steakhouse, Sentora, and Gauntlet—controlling roughly $6.8 billion of that amount. These same firms provide yield products through major exchanges, brokers, and decentralized finance applications, giving them distribution channels that attract deposits while they retain decision-making power over capital allocation and risk parameters.
Capital consolidation toward larger curators has accelerated following recent losses, with depositors shifting toward established managers and safer collateral rather than exiting vaults entirely. Regulatory developments may reinforce this trend by imposing licensing and compliance requirements that larger firms are better equipped to absorb than smaller competitors.
Despite operating on open infrastructure, the vault managers are increasingly resembling traditional asset managers in structure and function. What remains unclear is whether further regulatory pressure will expand the three-firm concentration, and how the market will respond if additional losses occur among the dominant curators.