2026-01-10 12:31:26

Recently, DeFi lock-up data has indeed been loosening. Ethereum dropped from its high of $97.3 billion in August last year to $72.7 billion now, a decline of over 25%. The situation is even more severe for Solana — from $13.2 billion directly down to $8.86 billion, shrinking by more than one-third. Binance Smart Chain is also not doing well, falling from $8.99 billion to $6.79 billion.

The logic behind this is actually easy to understand. During a bull market, everyone’s eyes turn red—mining, providing liquidity, and various forms of aggressive growth. Once a bear market blows in, funds immediately retreat, and those projects that relied on hype naturally collapse.

But from another perspective, the decline in TVL may not be entirely a bad thing. This process is like metabolism in nature—bubbles are squeezed out, and sediments settle. Projects that are truly competitive can survive and accumulate real users and traffic. When the next bull market starts to rise, these veteran projects that have endured the winter will appear especially resilient. At this stage, instead of rushing to get on board, it’s better to stay calm, observe carefully, and leave room for research.

ETH-0,62%

SOL-1,95%

View Original

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.

11 Likes

Reward
11
9
Repost
Share

Comment

0/400

PhantomMiner

· 01-13 12:24

Bear market favorites to read these kinds of articles, feeling of self-delusion is really comfortable

View OriginalReply0

ser_ngmi

· 01-12 01:46

TVL is crashing so hard while still telling stories; some projects probably won't recover.

View OriginalReply0

ChainSauceMaster

· 01-11 06:46

I'm really not worried about the TVL dropping like this; on the contrary, I feel quite comfortable with the cleanup.

View OriginalReply0

tx_pending_forever

· 01-10 12:59

SOL has dropped so sharply, I knew something was going to happen. Speaking of which, the bear market cleanup is also quite brutal, really a night back to the pre-liberation era. Instead of messing around now, it's better to see who can survive until the next wave. Wait, are those projects still坚持 really that resilient? After this wave, it feels like the entire ecosystem has become quite虚了不少.

View OriginalReply0

Frontrunner

· 01-10 12:58

I can still tolerate SOL dropping by one-third, I really give in.

View OriginalReply0

PermabullPete

· 01-10 12:57

The TVL has shrunk so much, and you're still telling stories? I just want to know if you've bottomed out.

View OriginalReply0

memecoin_therapy

· 01-10 12:46

Sol has fallen so much, yet you still dare to talk about metabolism. I think it's more like catabolism.

View OriginalReply0

RektButSmiling

· 01-10 12:35

Sol drops more than one-third? I've seen through it long ago, this trash project deserves to die. --- TVL decline is just clearing out inventory; only after clearing it will there be real opportunities. Don’t believe it? Just wait and see. --- Old-timer project? Ha, only those who survive the bull market are true veterans. Now, the dead and the crippled are everywhere. --- Having a competitive protocol survive? No problem with that. The key is, who really knows which ones are truly competitive? --- I'm just puzzled, why are people still mining at this time? Aren't they afraid of losing everything? --- What a joke about research. Serious people are all losing money. Might as well just gamble. --- Popping the bubble and settling the sediment? Sounds nice, but it’s actually just another way of saying “cutting the leeks.” --- Waiting for the next bull market? Bro, I can't wait that long. --- ETH from 973 to 727, my portfolio went from full to empty. Now looking at these numbers, it’s no different from looking at my own account.

View OriginalReply0