When DeFi Isn't Decentralized: Lessons from the Aave Bank Run

NYDIG's Pete Janney and Greg Cipolaro break down a North Korean exploit that drained nearly $300 million from a DeFi project, triggering knock-on effects across the crypto lending ecosystem. The pair size up the digital asset-backed lending market, roughly $70 billion in outstanding loans, with about half originated through DeFi platforms, and walk through how a single exploit on Kelp cascaded into Aave, drained TVL from ~$28 billion to ~$13 billion, and pushed dollar borrowing rates from around 4% to 13-15%. They examine the mechanics of the digital bank run, why borrowers and depositors are now locked in, and the governance and economic risks that institutional participants often abstract away. Greg argues the term "DeFi" is a misnomer, with "open finance" being a more accurate description given how centralized the decision-making actually is. The conversation closes with what this means for Wall Street's tokenization and stablecoin roadmaps, and why a high-touch, traditional approach to digital asset lending matters more than ever.