S&P Global launches risk assessments for crypto lending vaults

S&P Global Ratings has introduced a new framework to assess risk in digital asset lending vaults as the sector grows rapidly and deposits reach about $10 billion. The framework looks at six areas: portfolio credit quality, liquidity mismatch, curator risk, blockchain risk, protocol risk, and vault security and governance. S&P said the assessments are designed to measure potential losses for investors, not to assign credit ratings or judge yields. According to S&P, the goal is to give investors and capital allocators more transparency when evaluating DeFi vaults. The company said it plans to release its first Vault Risk Assessments later, but has not said which vaults will be reviewed first. The move comes as crypto vaults expand across exchanges and DeFi platforms, while past exploits and regulatory uncertainty continue to draw scrutiny.