Echelon is a decentralized, non-custodial lending protocol purpose-built with the Move programming language. Currently deployed on Aptos, Movement, and Initia, it serves as the core capital coordination layer for Move-based DeFi, enabling users to supply assets to earn yield and borrow against collateral through overcollateralized loans.
The protocol offers several core products. The primary lending markets feature variable-rate borrowing with vault-based accounting where depositors passively accrue interest from borrowers. Efficiency Mode (E-Mode), inspired by Aave, enables higher loan-to-value ratios of up to 90% on correlated asset pairs such as stablecoins or liquid staking tokens. Isolated pools provide risk-segregated markets for long-tail assets, preventing contagion to core liquidity. The Fixed Yield product allows users to tokenize, trade, and leverage yield-bearing assets without liquidation risk on the yield component. One-click looping automates complex leverage strategies, delivering yields up to approximately 25% APY through automated deposit-borrow-redeposit cycles.
Echelon supports a diverse range of collateral including stablecoins (USDC, USDT, sUSDe), multiple Bitcoin representations (sBTC, xBTC, WBTC, aBTC), composable LP tokens from Thala, and native APT with its yield-bearing derivatives. This breadth of supported assets positions Echelon as both the dominant stablecoin hub and the primary BTCfi venue on Aptos. The protocol employs a multi-layered risk architecture including supply and borrow caps per asset, conservative LTV and liquidation thresholds, rate limits on deposits and withdrawals, and an automated liquidation mechanism. Oracle infrastructure is powered by Chainlink as the primary source with Pyth and Switchboard as fallbacks, ensuring tamper-resistant pricing for fair liquidations.
As of late 2025, Echelon has secured between $200M and $400M in total value locked, ranking among the top Aptos DeFi protocols. The protocol holds over $90M in sUSDe deposits, representing the dominant share of stablecoin liquidity on Aptos, and over $100M in BTC-backed collateral. The Aptos Foundation has recognized Echelon as the chain’s core lending layer and admitted it to the Liquidity Foundation Module (LFM) growth program. Echelon maintains integrations with major infrastructure providers including LayerZero and Wormhole for cross-chain bridging, and partnerships with Thala, StakeStone, OKX, Echo Protocol, Ethena Labs, Circle, and PancakeSwap. The protocol is backed by Maelstrom, Ethena Labs, Aptos Foundation, Amber Group, Saison Capital, RE7 Capital, Laser Digital, and Interop Ventures.
