The DeFi sector recorded a solid recovery during Q3 2026 driven by tokenized equities and lending deposits, according to ARK Invest’s quarterly report. However, the firm warned that much of this traction relies on token incentives and broker integrations, in a context where Ethereum mainnet revenue fell from $63 million to approximately $40.6 million.
This trend reflects a structural migration of on-chain volume toward alternative networks such as BNB Chain and Robinhood Chain , supported by a tokenized equities market that reached $50 billion in decentralized exchange (DEX) spot volume. At the same time, deposits in lending protocols increased by 51% to $81 billion, while Ethereum staking yields decreased to 2.61%, relying on more than 96% inflationary new issuance rather than actual network fee collection.
The DeFi sector shows a notable acceleration in real-world asset (RWA) adoption , but its sustainability will require transforming temporary incentives into self-sufficient organic demand. The market’s next step will be to observe whether upcoming scalability upgrades succeed in reviving Ethereum mainnet direct revenue and fees.
Source: https://assets.arkinvest.com/media-8e522a83-1b23-4d58-a202-792712f8d2d3/c493bb1c-4d4e-4b64-8c19-55081b525238/The%20DeFi%20Quarterly%20%28Q3,%202026%29.pdf
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