DeFi Regulation New Trends: Innovation Exemptions and Market Dynamics

Recently, the regulatory environment in the United States seems to be sending positive signals to the DeFi sector. At a crypto roundtable on June 9, senior officials from regulatory agencies expressed their support for DeFi innovation, suggesting that the sector may usher in a more favorable development space.

However, the DeFi market presents a complex pattern: the total locked value of some leading protocols (TVL) has reached new highs repeatedly, with strong fundamental data; while others have shown weak growth, and the token prices have performed worse than at the beginning of the year. Although DeFi tokens have recently seen a rapid rebound, whether this is merely a short-term emotional fluctuation or reflects deep value logic still requires further observation.

Regulatory Attitude Shift: DeFi Welcomes "Innovation Exemption" Framework

At a recent cryptocurrency roundtable meeting, senior officials from regulatory agencies stated that the fundamental principles of DeFi align with core values such as economic freedom and private property rights in the United States, and they support the self-custody of crypto assets. They emphasized that blockchain technology enables financial transactions without intermediaries, and regulatory bodies should not hinder such innovations.

More notably, regulators have revealed for the first time that they are studying the development of an "innovation exemption" policy framework for DeFi platforms. This framework aims to "quickly allow regulated and unregulated entities to bring on-chain products and services to market." They also explicitly stated that developers building self-custody or privacy-focused software should not be held liable under federal securities laws solely for releasing code.

These statements are seen by the market as a significant positive, triggering a surge in DeFi token prices. If the "innovation exemption" is implemented, it is expected to create a more relaxed and clear regulatory environment for the development of DeFi projects in the United States.

Data Analysis: Slow TVL Growth, Token Price Rebound

After positive regulatory news was released, DeFi tokens generally experienced a significant increase of 20% to 40%. However, an analysis of the data for the top 20 DeFi protocols over the past six months shows that their TVL growth in the first half of 2025 is not significant, with 7 protocols even experiencing a decline in TVL.

The fastest growing is a certain RWA protocol, while in traditional DeFi protocols, a certain lending platform stands out, with a TVL surpassing $26 billion, reaching an all-time high, and growing by over $6 billion in the first half of the year. Another noteworthy is a certain lending protocol, which saw a TVL increase of 72.97%.

In terms of token prices, these DeFi protocols experienced an average maximum drawdown of 57% in the first half of 2025. Although the recent market recovery has driven a significant rebound in token prices, most protocols' token prices have still not returned to the levels of January 1, 2025. On average, these tokens are still down 24% compared to their price on January 1.

However, looking at the rebound from the low point, the tokens of these DeFi projects have performed remarkably, with an average rebound of about 95.59%. Some tokens have rebounded by more than 150%. It is worth noting that the price trends of the tokens do not seem to have a direct correlation with the performance of the TVL of these DeFi protocols.

Key Project Analysis

A Lending Platform: As a leading DeFi project, this platform's performance data in the first half of the year has been impressive, with TVL breaking historical highs multiple times. It currently supports 18 public chains and has launched a new tokenomics proposal, including a weekly $1 million token buyback plan.

Some DEX: The platform officially launched a new version in 2025, introducing more flexible custom logic and significantly reducing Gas fees. Although the TVL declined in the first half of the year, there has still been an increase in ETH staking volume.

A certain stablecoin protocol: The protocol has undergone a comprehensive brand upgrade. Although the TVL has seen a decline, another protocol within its ecosystem has performed exceptionally well in the RWA direction. Its token price is expected to shine in 2025, rising more than 170% from its lowest point.

Some Re-staking Protocol: This protocol has pioneered the concept of "re-staking." After experiencing explosive growth in TVL, it temporarily fell back, but has re-entered a growth cycle since April, increasing by 77% in less than 2 months.

A certain liquid staking protocol: As a leading project in the liquid staking sector, this protocol's TVL once reached nearly $40 billion. However, with the rapid growth of Layer 2, its TVL has shown a downward trend. How to quickly transform to adapt to more markets may be its primary task to maintain its leading position.

The shift in regulatory attitude has injected new vitality into the U.S. DeFi market. In the future, the clarification of regulations may attract more traditional financial capital with a lower risk appetite to enter the DeFi space. At the same time, attempts by large financial institutions to launch unique DeFi products not only signal a broader prospect for integration but also indicate that competition in the incremental market will become more intense. This new situation initiated by regulatory easing may very well be a new starting point for DeFi’s maturity and deep integration with traditional finance.