Decentralized lending protocol ZeroLend, which once held nearly $359 million in user deposits, is shutting down.
The platform's founder announced the news, citing persistent operating losses and a deteriorating ecosystem, which have rendered the protocol unviable.
According to DefiLlama, the protocol's total value locked (TVL) has fallen 98% from its November 2024 peak to just $6.6 million. The remaining TVL is currently distributed across Linea ($2.75 million), Ethereum ($1.97 million), and ZKsync Era ($933,000), with smaller balances remaining on Blast, Sonic, and Base, among other networks.
Our first priority is to ensure users can safely withdraw their assets. Most markets have already reached zero TVL, and we strongly encourage all users to withdraw all remaining funds from the platform. "For ZERO token holders, this means the end of ZeroLend's story," wrote the DeFi lender's founder.
The collapse follows a long period during which ZeroLend operated at a loss. According to the founder, many early-stage blockchains became inactive or illiquid, oracle providers ceased support, and as the protocol grew in popularity, hackers and scammers began to show increased interest. As a result, the protocol's gross revenue declined from its 2025 peak of $3.11 million to $355,000.