Aave
AAVE, formally ETHLend, is a non-custodial lending protocol that allows users to earn interest on deposits and borrow assets with variable or stable interest rates.
Background
ETHLend was founded by Stani Kulechov as a decentralized peer-to-peer lending platform on Ethereum. In January 2020, ETHLend rebranded to Aave and transitioned from peer-to-peer lending to a liquidity pool lending model.
The AAVE token was introduced as the successor to the LEND token. Primarily used for governance, AAVE is also used as insurance to cover protocol shortfalls. In addition, Aave incentivizes users who stake AAVE with rewards including transaction fee discounts.
Since 2020, Aave has expanded to deploy contracts on Optimism, Harmony, Polygon, Fantom, Arbitrum, and Avalanche.
History
ETHLend created
Rebranded to Aave and transitioned to a liquidity pool lending model
Aave Arc launched
Aave Arc V3 released
What is Aave's place in the ecosystem?
Aave has an on-chain governance system that provides holders the ability to submit and vote on Aave Improvement Proposals (AIPs). Approved proposals are integrated by the Aave team.