GlossaryIntermediate
Total Value Locked
The total value of crypto assets deposited into a DeFi protocol's smart contracts.
Total Value Locked (TVL) is the total value of crypto assets currently deposited into a specific DeFi protocol, commonly used as a rough proxy for that protocol's scale and adoption.
TVL has real limitations as a metric, including potential double-counting across protocols and sensitivity to the underlying assets' price movements, not just genuine deposit activity.
Examples
- A lending protocol's TVL reflects the total value users have supplied and locked as collateral.
- TVL can rise or fall purely from price movement, not just from new deposits or withdrawals.