Legend becomes latest DeFi app to throw in towel

5 hours ago

Decentralized concern mobile “superapp” Legend has announced it is winding down aft astir 2 years of operation, adding to a drawstring of crypto apps deciding to unopen down this year. 

Legend was a DeFi aggregator that aimed to bring DeFi to its users alternatively than forcing them to motion into aggregate antithetic wallets oregon applications to usage their crypto. 

“We believed the close interface could enactment DeFi’s astir almighty primitives successful beforehand of mainstream users.” Legend co-founder Jayson Hobby said connected Tuesday. 

However, contempt the merchandise uncovering an audience, it didn’t “grow to the standard the institution needed to beryllium sustainable long-term,” said Hobby. “Closing is the close telephone for our squad and our investors.”

Over 20 DeFi, NFT and GameFi protocols person announced they are shutting down this year, including ZeroLend, which said successful February that it planned to unopen down aft 3 years of operations, citing an unsustainable concern model.

Closure announcement connected the Legend website. Source: Legend.xyz

Solana DeFi aggregator Step Finance said it was closing down successful February aft a $40 cardinal treasury wallet breach successful January, and DeFi derivatives protocol Polynomial besides ceased operations successful February. 

Balancer Labs, the squad down the DeFi protocol Balancer, shuttered successful March aft mounting fiscal unit pursuing a $116 cardinal hack successful November.

Meanwhile, Seamless Protocol, a DeFi lending protocol connected Base, said it was winding down successful April, blaming volatile marketplace conditions.

Users don’t attraction whether merchandise is onchain oregon not

Legend is simply a non-custodial, mobile-first DeFi aggregator launched astir precocious 2024 by erstwhile Compound Finance executives, including CEO Hobby. It is utilized for earning, trading, borrowing and swapping assets similar stablecoins and Ether via integrations with different DeFi protocols specified arsenic Aave, Compound and Uniswap. 

It aimed to bring DeFi to its users alternatively than forcing them to motion into aggregate antithetic wallets oregon applications to usage their crypto. 

It announced its archetypal backing round, raising $15 cardinal from Andreessen Horowitz and Coinbase Ventures, successful February 2025. 

Related: Kelp DAO eyes unpausing withdrawals aft attackers’ rsETH connected Arbitrum is burned

However, Hobby said that mainstream users don’t attraction if a merchandise is onchain oregon not. “They privation outcomes,” helium said. “Better yield, faster payments, much power implicit their money.”

“The merchandise that wins isn’t the 1 that explains crypto better, it’s the 1 that hides it completely. The benefits are felt, not explained.”

Legend has not disclosed progressive idiosyncratic counts oregon full worth locked figures, arsenic it operates arsenic an aggregator, but the TVL for the broader DeFi ecosystem has tanked 50% since October successful the wider crypto carnivore market. 

The Legend app volition support moving usually for the adjacent 60 days and volition spell offline connected July 12, said Hobby.

Magazine: DeFi’s billion-dollar secret: The insiders liable for hacks 

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