Stani Kulechov on Aave V4, Avalanche, and Why RWAs Hit $100B This Year

Summary

Aave founder Stani Kulechov and Ava Labs President John Wu discuss Aave V4's launch on Avalanche to enable tokenized RWA lending, the convergence of DeFi and TradFi, GHO stablecoin mechanics, the upcoming Aave App for mainstream users, and a forecast that the total tokenized RWA market could reach $100 billion by end of 2026.

• Aave has processed over $3 trillion in deposits and $1 trillion in borrow volume across its protocol.
• Aave V4 introduces a flexible hub-and-spoke architecture and launches its first non-Ethereum deployment on Avalanche.
• Avalanche was selected for its strong DeFi user base, low transaction fees, and institutional bridging efforts.
• The Horizon initiative aims to build a $500 million securities lending market using tokenized assets as collateral on Aave V4.
• GHO is a native stablecoin that functions as a credit instrument with fixed borrowing rates and a savings module (Asco) that reinvests liquidity.
• The Aave App will offer a non-custodial mobile experience with email sign-up, bank integrations, and fully abstracted blockchain complexity to target mainstream users.
• Tokenized real-world asset market projected to double to $100 billion by the end of 2026 behind institutional adoption.
• The discussion highlights the potential for DeFi to disrupt opaque prime brokerage models through transparent, continuous settlement.