Kendrick likened Aave to an automated blockchain-based bank that operates without employees or discretionary decision-making. At its peak in October 2025, the protocol held around $75 billion in deposits, a level that the analyst said would have ranked it among the 30 largest banks in the United States.
Looking ahead, Kendrick expects the value of tokenized assets actively used in DeFi applications to increase 37-fold by the end of the decade. Since Aave’s revenue model is closely tied to lending activity and deposits, the bank expects the protocol’s growth to translate relatively directly into gains for the AAVE token.
The report also points to the potential restart of Aave’s token buyback program as an additional catalyst. The protocol’s Horizon initiative, designed to support lending against real-world token assets in a permissioned environment, could help attract traditional financial institutions and accelerate its adoption.
Despite recent weakness in the digital asset market, the broader crypto price backdrop is improving and Aave is expected to be among the beneficiaries of capital returning to DeFi, the report adds.
Aave was up 5.6% over the past 24 hours, trading around $76.
Learn more: DeFi shaken by $292 million hack, but showing resilience, says Standard Chartered
