Trillions of assets, millions of users

As Aave exits SEC oversight, the roadmap focuses on Aave V4, Horizon, and Aave App.

Aave Founder and CEO Stani Kulechov on Tuesday outlined its 2026 master plan, detailing how Aave Labs intends to extend the protocol into a core part of the global on-chain financial infrastructure through three major initiatives: Aave V4, Horizon, and the Aave App.

According to Kulechov, Aave V4 will introduce a complete redesign of lending protocols to address liquidity fragmentation and significantly expand capacity.

three pillars

This upgrade will introduce a hub-and-spoke architecture. In this architecture, capital hubs are deployed in each network, with specialized spokes built on top to support lending markets tailored to different asset types. The ultimate goal is to support trillions of dollars in assets and position Aave as the leading liquidity provider for institutions, fintechs, and enterprises seeking on-chain credit.

The company also plans to launch a new developer experience with V4. This tool aims to lower the barrier to building applications and launching new markets on this protocol in 2026. Another central component of the roadmap is Horizon. Horizon happens to be Aave’s institutional marketplace for real-world assets.

Horizon allows eligible institutions to use tokenized assets such as U.S. Treasury securities and other credit instruments as collateral to borrow stablecoins while meeting compliance and operational requirements. Kulechov explained that Horizon’s net deposits have already reached approximately $550 million and are expected to grow to more than $1 billion next year.

Aave Labs plans to expand Horizon through partnerships with asset management and financial companies such as Circle, Ripple, Franklin Templeton, and VanEck.

The third pillar of our 2026 strategy is the Aave app. Aave Labs describes it as a major consumer product and a key driver of user growth. The full rollout of the Aave app is scheduled for early 2026, and the company is targeting the first 1 million users through this product. Kulechov said the integrated deployment of V4, Horizon and Aave apps is aimed at supporting Aave’s broader goal of becoming a global on-chain trust layer capable of serving both institutional investors and retail users at scale.

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SEC closes investigation into Aave

Meanwhile, the master plan was announced shortly after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) concluded its investigation into the Aave protocol for the first time in four years. Kuletchov acknowledged the development and tweeted:

“This process has required significant efforts and resources from our team and myself as a founder personally to protect Aave, its ecosystem, and DeFi more broadly. DeFi has faced unwarranted regulatory pressure in recent years, and we are happy to put this behind us as we usher in a new era where developers can truly build the future of finance.”

Interestingly, Aave is not the only platform approved by securities watchdogs. The SEC has closed multiple investigations begun under the Biden administration. This includes Gemini, OpenSea, Robinhood, Uniswap, and more.