Fluid’s Borrower-First Strategy: Competing for DeFi’s Core Lending Market

Fluid is positioning itself as a direct competitor to Aave by targeting the core DeFi lending market—stablecoin borrowing against ETH—rather than focusing on niche or permissionless lending. By introducing borrower-centric features like Smart Debt and Smart Collateral, Fluid aims to reduce borrowing costs while maintaining a pooled-risk model. This report explores Fluid’s lending innovations, market positioning, and revenue potential, projecting it could reach 10% of stablecoin and ETH borrowing market share by Q4 2027, with a total base case valuation of $700 million.