DeFi Lending Platforms: How They Work and Which Ones Still Matter in 2025

When you lend your crypto through a DeFi lending platform, a blockchain-based system that matches lenders with borrowers without banks or intermediaries. Also known as decentralized finance lending, it lets you earn interest just by holding crypto—no application, no credit check, no waiting. Unlike banks, these platforms run on smart contracts. Your money isn’t held by a company—it’s locked in code that automatically pays you back with interest.

One of the most common ways people use these platforms is by staking Ethereum. Lido Finance, a leading liquid staking protocol that lets you stake ETH and still use your tokens in other DeFi apps. Also known as liquid staking provider, it turns your staked ETH into stETH, a token that keeps growing in value as you earn rewards. You can then use stETH to borrow, trade, or earn even more on other DeFi platforms. It’s not a bank. It’s not a broker. It’s just code doing what it was built to do. But not all DeFi lending platforms are like Lido. Some are risky, some are dead, and others never had real users to begin with. The ones that survive in 2025 are the ones with real liquidity, clear audits, and active communities—not just flashy websites.

DeFi lending platforms require you to understand risk. If the smart contract has a bug, your money could vanish. If the token you’re lending loses its peg, your returns disappear. And if no one wants to borrow your crypto, your interest rate drops to zero. That’s why so many platforms you see listed online are ghost towns. They look alive on paper, but the real numbers—trading volume, user count, locked value—tell a different story. The platforms that still work in 2025 are the ones that solved a real problem: giving people control over their money without giving up liquidity.

Below, you’ll find real reviews of platforms people actually used—and the ones they walked away from. You’ll see which ones delivered on their promises, which ones vanished overnight, and which ones were scams disguised as innovation. No fluff. No hype. Just what happened when real people tried to earn interest on their crypto in 2025.