State of DeFi: September Recap and the CLARITY Act

If you’ve been following DeFi lately, there’s a lot to keep up with. Banks are putting stablecoins to work, more financial assets are moving onto blockchains, and lending markets give users ways to access liquidity while keeping the assets they want to hold.

In Washington, the picture is more complicated. The CLARITY Act stalled in the Senate earlier this month, leaving the broader U.S. framework for digital assets unresolved, while regulators continue taking steps within their existing authority.

For anyone using DeFi, these developments raise a practical question: what actually changes when you deposit, borrow, or earn yield? This week’s updates help explain where adoption is moving and which questions still need answers.

Where DeFi stands this week

As of September 25, DefiLlama’s DeFi dashboard showed approximately $95.3 billion in total value locked, the dollar value of assets tracked across DeFi protocols. Decentralized exchanges processed around $67.7 billion in spot trades over the previous seven days, up 9.38% from the preceding period, while perpetual-futures volume reached roughly $168.7 billion, up 19.82%.

Perpetual futures let traders take positions on asset prices without an expiration date, so that increase can include both speculation and efforts to protect existing holdings against price moves.

Meanwhile, stablecoin market capitalization stood at approximately $307.3 billion, up 0.96% over seven days and 1.24% over 30 days. Together, these figures show stronger trading activity alongside a modest increase in the stablecoin market.

Each measure tells us something different. Trading volume measures how much changes hands, while stablecoin supply includes funds held in wallets, exchanges, payment systems, and other uses beyond DeFi. TVL also moves with asset prices, so an increase doesn’t necessarily mean new deposits arrived.

If you’re looking at a lending opportunity, the more useful next step is to examine that particular market: how much has been borrowed, how much remains available to withdraw, and what is driving the interest rate.

Where the CLARITY Act stands

CLARITY aims to create a clearer federal framework for digital-asset markets, including how assets are classified and how businesses operating around them are regulated. The House passed its legislation in 2025, followed by a Senate Banking Committee discussion draft that helped shape the next stage of debate.

On September 15, 2026, the Senate failed to advance the measure. In his statement following the vote, Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott called on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to provide further direction while Congress continues its work. As of this update, CLARITY has not become law.

That leaves businesses and developers watching both Congress and the agencies. For DeFi, a central question is how rules apply to the people building software, the people controlling a service, and the businesses handling financial activity through it. Those roles can overlap, which makes the details of any legislation especially important.

Agency action is already giving parts of the industry more specific guidance. On September 17, the SEC announced a temporary, conditional exemption for certain tokenized stock trading venues. It allows qualifying venues to use permissioned automated trading pools for certain stocks represented onchain, subject to conditions and limits.

Then, on September 24, CFTC staff published updated crypto and blockchain FAQs, addressing how firms registered with the agency can invest customer funds in tokenized versions of permitted investments and use blockchain technology for recordkeeping.

These actions show how regulatory work can move forward while legislation remains stalled. Their scope matters, though: an exemption for particular stock trading venues or guidance for registered firms doesn’t establish a comprehensive framework for DeFi lending.

How the GENIUS Act fits into the picture

The GENIUS Act deals with a different part of the market. Signed into law on July 18, 2025, it establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins, while CLARITY addresses broader digital-asset market structure. Enactment and implementation are separate stages, so the requirements applying to a specific issuer still need to be checked.

For users, the distinction becomes clearer when you follow the money. A stablecoin issuer provides the asset you hold, while a lending protocol determines how that asset is supplied, borrowed, and withdrawn. Rules governing the issuer answer only part of the questions about what happens when you put those funds into a lending position.

This week brought more real-world uses for blockchain finance

On September 22, SoFi and Mastercard announced live stablecoin settlement across SoFi Bank’s debit and credit card program using SoFiUSD. SoFi said it was migrating its full card program, expected to process more than $25 billion in annualized volume, to the arrangement.

In everyday terms, stablecoins are being used behind the scenes to move the money associated with card payments. A customer can keep using a familiar card while the settlement process changes underneath.

Europe also reached a milestone on September 21 with the launch of Pontes, the Eurosystem’s service connecting blockchain-based financial platforms with its existing payment infrastructure. It allows eligible institutions to settle wholesale transactions using central bank money.

These are developments in payments and institutional settlement, and neither announcement establishes that capital is flowing into open DeFi lending markets. Our reading is that they demonstrate a growing willingness to use blockchain infrastructure for ordinary financial functions, which could make onchain products more familiar to a wider audience over time.

What this means when you’re earning or borrowing

For a DeFi user, the connection between these developments and a lending position starts with understanding what your money is doing. A stablecoin can be held, transferred, or supplied to a lending market, with each choice introducing different conditions and risks.

The same is true of yield. Returns may come from borrower interest, staking rewards, an underlying investment strategy, or temporary token incentives. Knowing the source helps you understand why a rate might change and whether the opportunity still makes sense after rewards fall or fees are included.

This is also where yield-bearing collateral becomes useful. An asset can continue earning while securing a loan, giving you access to liquidity while you retain the underlying position. Curvance’s guide to productive collateral in DeFi explains how that works across different types of assets.

Imagine you hold $10,000 in collateral earning a simple annual rate of 5%, then borrow $4,000 at 7% without reinvesting the borrowed funds. Over a year, the collateral would earn $500 and borrowing interest would cost $280, leaving $220 before other costs.

You’ve gained access to $4,000 while keeping the income-producing asset, but borrowing still reduces your annual income by $280 compared with holding that same collateral without a loan. You also owe the principal, and a drop in collateral value could put the position at risk of liquidation.

These are hypothetical figures, assuming unchanged rates and asset values and excluding fees, compounding, and losses. The practical benefit is flexibility, with the economics depending on both sides of the position.

The details behind a lending market still matter

Clearer rules could help more people and institutions assess DeFi, but the quality of an individual lending market still comes down to how it works when conditions change.

Consider an asset valued at $100 by a protocol’s price feed. If selling a large amount quickly would only bring in $95 per token, that gap matters when collateral needs to cover a loan. A price feed, often called an oracle, supplies a reference value, while actual sale proceeds depend on available buyers and market liquidity. Our DeFi oracle risk framework explores that relationship in more detail.

Withdrawal conditions matter too. When much of a lending pool’s funds are already borrowed, less cash is immediately available for suppliers to withdraw. A higher displayed rate may therefore come with tighter liquidity, especially if several users want to exit at once.

For Curvance users, understanding the collateral, borrowing costs, liquidation threshold, and available liquidity makes it easier to judge whether a position fits their needs. Our DeFi lending risk framework provides a starting point for working through those questions.

What to watch next

The next meaningful policy developments will be changes to legislation, further agency guidance, and the conditions attached to new exemptions or rules. Their practical value depends on who they cover, which activities they address, and when they apply.

Onchain, borrowing demand, the source of yields, and the ability to enter or exit positions will remain useful signals. A larger stablecoin market creates more potential uses for digital dollars, while lending protocols have to earn users’ confidence through clear information and reliable operation.

At Curvance, we see the opportunity in giving users more flexibility with the assets they already hold, supported by lending infrastructure they can understand and evaluate. As the industry develops, making those choices easier to assess will remain just as valuable as making them available.

Sources and scope: Updated through September 25, 2026, with developments from September 21–25 and earlier events included for context. Market figures are rounded snapshots of DefiLlama’s public dashboards, with seven-day changes based on its rolling comparisons. Legislative and regulatory descriptions draw on the linked official statements; implications for future adoption are editorial analysis.