Alpha Recap #16: Tensions at Aave, ETH Yield Strategies and New Horizons for Hyperliquid

The Alpha Recap highlights the most important crypto market Alphas of the week. Every Friday, we bring you a concise selection of the most valuable insights from our Alpha Feed.

Reserved for OAK Premium members, the Alpha Feed gathers insights, yield and airdrop strategies, as well as key market intelligence. In other words, it reflects OAK Research’s core DNA: delivering curated content that cuts through market noise.

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BGD Labs Leaves Aave

BGD Labs, one of Aave’s long-standing Service Providers, will leave the protocol at the beginning of April. Founded by Ernesto Boado, Aave’s former CTO, BGD played a major role in shaping the V3 architecture and developing several critical security tools.

This departure formalizes an increasingly visible rift with Aave Labs. In its forum statement, BGD points to what it describes as a gradual centralization dynamic, where independent contributors have been sidelined in favor of a vision primarily driven by Aave Labs.

Tensions crystallized around the “Aave Will Win” proposal and, more broadly, the development of V4. According to BGD, V4 has been designed almost exclusively by Aave Labs, with limited involvement from other key contributors. Control over the brand and official communication channels further reinforces what BGD views as a structural imbalance, making collaboration increasingly difficult.

BGD Labs’ exit is far from insignificant. Many observers, both on X and on the Aave forum, have already emphasized the potential long-term impact on the protocol’s trajectory. Whether a resolution can be reached between Labs and the DAO before other Service Providers follow suit remains an open question. Meanwhile, the token continues to trend downward.

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A Snapshot of ETH Yield Opportunities

In a recent Alpha, we outlined several ways to generate yield on ETH, with the goal of offering strategies suited to different risk profiles.

Some opportunities rely on relatively accessible protocols with measured exposure and controlled risk. Others involve more advanced constructions designed to capture higher returns.

For reference, the mechanisms presented allow for yields ranging from 3.2% to 28% APY, depending on the strategy and the level of risk assumed.

Beyond purely informational analysis, the ambition of this Feed is to identify yield opportunities that remain actionable regardless of market conditions, whether favorable or more constrained.

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Hyperliquid Launches Its Policy Arm in the United States

Hyperliquid continues to reach new structural milestones. Volumes increasingly rival those of certain centralized platforms, the EVM ecosystem is expanding, HIP-3 markets are running at full speed, and HIP-4, set to introduce options and prediction markets, is on the horizon. Despite a more challenging environment, revenues remain resilient. The “AWS of liquidity” thesis continues to materialize.

This week marks a strategic turning point. To attract new liquidity flows, particularly institutional capital, Hyperliquid will inevitably need to engage with the US regulatory framework.

The Hyperliquid Foundation has therefore announced the creation of the “Hyperliquid Policy Center,” a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting a regulatory environment supportive of DeFi in the United States.

Three key profiles have been appointed to lead the initiative:

• Jake Chervinsky, former Blockchain Association and Variant executive, appointed CEO
• Brad Bourque, former Sullivan & Cromwell attorney specializing in derivatives
• Salah Ghazzal, also formerly at Variant and the Blockchain Association

The objective is clear: convert economic traction into tangible regulatory influence.

Opening the US market would significantly expand Hyperliquid’s addressable scope. With its optimized infrastructure and deep liquidity, the DEX could ultimately position itself as a settlement layer for brokers or specialized derivatives platforms, while extending direct access to US residents.

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