Uniswap's UNI Token Gains Favor in Crypto Futures Amidst Curve Finance Exploi

Uniswap's UNI Token Gains Favor in Crypto Futures Amidst Curve Finance Exploi

The recent multi-million dollar exploit of Curve Finance, a decentralized exchange (DEX) focused on stablecoins, has resulted in a shift of attention towards Uniswap's UNI token by traders. Following the exploit, funding rates in perpetual futures tied to UNI have surged to an annualized 19%, according to data provided by crypto services provider Matrixport. A positive funding rate indicates that the perpetual contract's price is trading at a premium compared to the mark price or the estimated true value of the contract, known as "marking-to-market." This situation suggests that traders with leveraged buy positions (longs) are dominating the market and are willing to pay funding to traders with short positions to keep their positions open. Markus Thielen, the head of research and strategy at Matrixport, explained that UNI token perpetuals are trading at a nearly 20% premium as traders expect Uniswap to gain even more market share in the aftermath of the CRV exploit. The exploit occurred when Curve Finance, the third-largest DEX, fell victim to a flash loan attack, which put $100 million worth of cryptocurrency at risk. Following the attack, the native token of Curve DAO, CRV, experienced a significant drop of over 15%, falling to $0.63. The sharp decline created additional risks, potentially endangering borrowed positions of Curve's founder, adding to the uncertainty and volatility in the market. Despite the exploit, the perpetual futures market has not shown signs of panic, with funding rates in CRV and AAVE markets remaining positive, indicating continued trader confidence. In the CRV market, the funding rates holding above zero suggest that traders are more focused on moving their positions away from the DEX rather than aggressively shorting the token. After the exploit, the total value locked (TVL) in Curve Finance declined from $3.2 billion to $1.8 billion, according to data from DeFiLlama. However, Uniswap's TVL has held steady at around $3.8 billion, while AAVE's TVL decreased from $5.85 billion to $5.37 billion. The resilience of Uniswap's UNI token in the face of the exploit and its rising popularity in the crypto futures market demonstrate its perceived strength and stability among traders. As the crypto market navigates through such challenges, traders are closely watching the developments in various projects and their respective tokens to assess risks and opportunities. In conclusion, the recent exploit on Curve Finance has led traders to pivot towards Uniswap's UNI token, as indicated by the surge in funding rates for UNI perpetual futures. Despite the exploit's impact on the TVL in Curve Finance, Uniswap has maintained its TVL, reflecting continued confidence in the platform. The crypto market remains vigilant, observing how these events unfold and how different tokens respond to changing market dynamics.

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