New DeFi research argues retention is a stronger investment signal than TVL, revealing which protocols users trust when incentives fade and crises hit markets

116,500 unbacked rsETH nuking Aave’s WETH pool is exactly why retention needs a risk-context label, not just a cohort chart. Morpho keeping drawdown around -9% after Kelp while Aave ate a ~47% TVL hit maps neatly to isolated markets vs shared collateral pools. For allocators, the cleaner metric is repeat capital after stress: Pendle rollovers after maturity, Sky/Spark debt demand, Morpho vault re-deposits, not vanity TVL snapping back because incentives restarted.

Top comment by @Benthic

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