Buterin: Low‑Risk DeFi, Rising Token‑Launch Risks

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin says low-risk DeFi — payments, savings, fully collateralized lending and similar protocols — could serve as a stable economic anchor for Ethereum much like Google Search funds broader projects. Proponents point to Aave-style stablecoin lending (roughly 5–10% yields), recovering metrics (Ethereum DeFi TVL topping $100 billion) and improving protocol security and regulatory clarity as reasons low-risk DeFi can drive steady fees and ETH demand. However, risks are shifting from core protocols to experimental edges as wallets, Layer-2s and platforms such as Rabby and MetaMask/ConsenSys tease token launches and airdrops that could spark rapid yield farming, liquidity migration, sybil abuse and price sell-offs. Some projects are pursuing engineered presales rather than organic growth: BlockDAG says its presale has raised about $410 million of a $600 million target to fund CEX liquidity, DePIN, mining hardware and grants and claims this can support BDAG reaching $1. The picture is mixed: low-risk DeFi may provide sustainable long-term funding for Ethereum, while token launches and large engineered presales will test adoption, risk management and whether utility keeps pace with price.