I've been following @YeiFinance for almost half a year now, watching it gradually emerge from the Sei ecosystem to become a core on-chain Decentralized Finance protocol. There are indeed many interesting points to discuss, even though the recent heat around SUI is not high!

As someone who usually enjoys various on-chain learning operations, I happen to have time today to take a look at this project together with everyone and understand it better:

First, let's stick to the old rule and see what Yei Finance is and what it does.

The first time I noticed Yei was actually because its locked amount on Sei is quite outstanding, currently around 400 million USD, accounting for 45% of the total locked amount on the Sei chain, almost half. This data is not inflated; it reflects actual usage. It combines lending, exchanging, and cross-chain functionalities quite smoothly.

To put it simply, Yei is like a "financial supermarket": you can earn interest by depositing coins in YeiLend, exchange coins in YeiSwap, and also transfer assets from other chains through YeiBridge, all without having to jump to other platforms.

This experience is quite important in the multi-chain era. Previously, when I operated on other chains, I could easily mix up wallet addresses several times when switching chains or changing coins. Yei really makes this much easier and convenient!

Moreover, it is quite close to the Sei official team. Whenever Sei has major moves, like the recent launch of the native USDC, Yei is always among the first to support it. The benefits of this closeness are quite evident.

For example, in the fourth phase of the Sei ecosystem yield season, Yei directly put out a reward pool of 1.4 million dollars specifically for users who deposit USDC across chains. Such resource allocation is something that ordinary projects definitely cannot obtain!

2. Functionality Experience: From depositing coins to cross-chain, the details are done quite well.

Let's talk about the specific operations, starting with depositing coins:
1) Depositing USDC in YeiLend is simpler than you think: connect your wallet (I used the BNB wallet and just happened to catch the promotion, where depositing USDC offers extra rewards), click "Supply", enter the amount, and confirm the transaction to finish.

The interface clearly marks key information such as APY and gas fees, making it understandable for beginners. There is a "E-mode" which is quite useful; enabling this when depositing stablecoins allows for a higher collateral rate. I deposit USDC to borrow USDT, and the LTV can reach 75%, which is more flexible than the standard mode.

2) Then there's YeiSwap, the slippage control for swapping coins is quite good: last time I swapped 500 USD of USDT using SEI, the actual amount received was less than 1 USD off from what I expected, which is quite reasonable for a low market cap on-chain.

It has "double收益", providing coins to the liquidity pool, allowing you to earn both trading fees and lending interest. I put some in the SEI-USDC pool, and the earnings are automatically settled every Wednesday, no manual operation is needed, which is worry-free.

3) The most practical part of cross-chain: YeiBridge transfers USDC from Ethereum to Sei, arriving in about 20 minutes, which is almost the indicated time. The USDC that crosses over can be used directly in Yei without needing to transfer wallets again. Last time I transferred USDT from Arbitrum, after it arrived, I directly deposited it into YeiLend, saving two steps.

Three, Clovis, this "behind-the-scenes brain", really has some substance.

The Clovis liquidity abstraction layer that Yei mentioned sounds impressive, but in practice, it functions like a "backend scheduling center."

For example, when you swap coins on YeiSwap, it will automatically choose the best prices from various pools across chains, so you don't have to compare which DEX is more suitable.

I tried swapping for a relatively uncommon token sFRAX, and it was able to pull liquidity from the Frax on-chain pool. If it were on another platform, I might have to manually cross-chain several times to get it done.

The biggest advantage of this design is "capital efficiency": in simple terms, it means that one amount of money can earn several returns at the same time.

I store ETH in Yei, which allows me to earn interest from lending, and when exchanging coins, this amount can automatically serve as collateral. During cross-chain transactions, I can enjoy the most favorable exchange rates. It's like getting three meals from one fish. This model is not new in Decentralized Finance, but Yei has implemented it quite smoothly, without too many complex settings.

4. NFT and Badges: Low-cost participation may lead to big surprises?
The Genesis NFT is currently priced at 145U, which isn't cheap, but if you interact with it a bit more, you can receive badges (available in green, blue, and orange, with a maximum of 999 of each). I researched this, and it's highly likely that these badges are related to future TGE airdrops, as many projects now use this method to identify genuine users.

The operation is not complicated; just spend 10 minutes a day doing tasks: deposit some coins, borrow some stablecoins, and transfer a little money across chains. Gradually, you will be able to unlock badges. I started doing this last week, and I have already received the green badge. The progress bar shows that I am halfway to completing the blue badge.

This way of participation that doesn't require a large investment is quite suitable for users who don't want to spend much money. Even if there is no airdrop in the end, the interest from holding coins in the meantime can cover the costs.

By the way, recently there's an event for the BNB wallet where you can participate together. When you deposit USDC, in addition to the normal interest, you can also get extra rewards, which means there are two layers of earnings. I put in 1000 dollars, and the APY turns out to be quite high, so the returns are pretty good.

5. Team and funding: solid background, currently no pitfalls.

I checked the team's background, and many core members come from Wormhole and Binance, with considerable experience in cross-chain and wallets.

In terms of financing: the 2 million seed round was led by Manifold, and we are currently raising 5 million in a strategic round, with a valuation of 50 million.

Based on its current monthly income of 450,000, this valuation is not outrageous; at least it hasn't reached a particularly high level of bubble.

In terms of security, its smart contracts have audit reports (although I haven't looked at them in detail, at least they dare to make them public), and they have been running for almost a year without any major security issues reported.

However, I must remind you that DeFi itself carries risks, especially in lending. You must pay attention to control and not use full leverage at every turn. I have seen people get liquidated due to market fluctuations, and that is truly unfortunate...

6. Finally: What kind of people are suitable to participate?

If you are already playing with the Sei chain, then Yei is basically unavoidable, as there are not many strong competitors in this ecosystem right now; if you are a cross-chain player, its bridging and multi-chain yield mechanisms are worth trying.

Even for a complete beginner, wanting to spend less money to experience DeFi, depositing some USDC to earn interest, and completing tasks to earn badges is also a good way.

Anyway, I plan to hold onto those badges for the long term and observe, after all, in the Sei ecosystem, Yei's position is indeed stable, and the team is quite proactive. I heard that the V2 version will add more chains and assets. As for the TGE, no matter when it comes, it's always a good idea to solidify the interaction records first, don't you think?

Objectively speaking, the benefits of Yei Finance are:

1) As a leading project in the Sei ecosystem, it has official resource support and a decent user base.

2) The one-stop functional integration makes operations more convenient, and cross-chain and liquidity scheduling are also smooth.

3) The team's background and financing situation are relatively stable, suitable for those who want to lay out on the Sei chain or earn some returns across multiple chains.

But there are also things to pay attention to:

1) Relying too much on the Sei ecosystem. If the Sei chain as a whole becomes inactive, it may directly impact its business.

2) The value of badges and NFTs depends entirely on whether the TGE can be realized in the future, so you need to follow up closely.

3) Although cross-chain functionality is convenient, the gas fees of different chains can fluctuate greatly, and the arrival times are also different, which may affect the experience;

4) Additionally, the common risks of smart contracts in Decentralized Finance and the liquidation risks caused by market volatility should also be approached with caution on Yei.

Finally, just a word: the project is quite good, but there are no guaranteed profits; every investment carries risks. We are all adults, so make sure to understand the situation and participate according to your own ability. Alright, that's all for today!

#YeiFinance # Sei ecosystem #DeFi工具 # cross-chain applications