As we prepare for the transition to Malda, we are aware of the excitement and just as much, the unease that comes with change.

We are deeply grateful to our users who have supported us throughout this 1.5-year journey, included Mendi in their investments, contributed to its growth by participating in key decisions, devoted their time, and shared their suggestions and critiques.

Taking a Look Back

Mendi was created in mid-2023, during a period of stagnant market conditions dominated by a downtrend, arguably the best time to build. At a time when the DeFi ecosystem was dominated by monopolistic major players and lacked diversity, Mendi was built on very simple, idealistic, yet innovative principles.

The vision behind Mendi was to achieve long-term integrity, sustainable growth, and utmost transparency. Combining the robust foundations of traditional money market principles with innovative tokenomics and a strategic launch plan proved the right formula for success at the time.

In this article, we aim to provide a progress report on the product, highlighting past and future roadmap items and emphasizing operational efficiency despite market sentiment.

Milestones, Achievements

Back in the day, when L2 solutions were a hot narrative, Linea was just a new player using a unique ZK-rollup tech and trying to get a fair market share among giants like Arbitrum and Optimism.

Being part of the L2 narrative was the right decision, but selecting the correct network was tough. The Mendi team was impressed by the vision and background of the Linea team (the same team also built Metamask, Truffle, and Infura). The chain offered great room for growth with low competition in the lending field. Also, the Linea Voyage campaign promised traction and growth, later paving the way for +$1B TVL.

Mendi made a humble start on Linea, with a few stablecoins and blue chips as money markets. The team quickly upgraded the market portfolio according to the community's demands and sentiments.

Our current single-chain lending protocol has served us well as a foundation, reaching peak TVL of $110+ million and preserving the %10-15 of the entire chain TVL. Mendi attracted more than half a million users and heavily contributed to the growth of Linea.

The historic growth of Mendi’s TVL showcased major success. Without any VC involvement, Mendi became one of the top 25 biggest DeFi protocols by holding %0.3 of the entire DeFi lending TVL at its peak. (This ratio currently corresponds to +$226M TVL)

MaldaStatistics

Distributed Value

• Staking Rewards distributed in $MENDI: 38,000,000+

• Reward Emissions $MENDI: 43,000,000+

• Mendi Loyalty Points (MLP) for Linea airdrop = 400,000+

All-Time Borrow Volume

Over the course of a year and a half, we issued over $485mil in net borrow volume!

Voice of the Community

So far, 26 proposals have been voted on, participating with +4.5M staked MENDI on average. These discussions have covered everything from managing POL and adjusting C-factors to deciding on the evolution into the Unified Liquidity Lending Protocol. This active participation shows how the community has played a central role in shaping growth and direction.

The transition to Malda has already generated significant excitement within the community. The initial seed round, known as “The Governance Round,” was capped at $250,000 and swiftly fulfilled.

As we approach the public testnet launch, the community’s enthusiasm is evident, with over 25,000 submissions received. This response underscores the trust and anticipation surrounding Malda’s high potential.

A New Era

Malda will continue to deliver value to its users. We’re taking a significant step towards creating a more interconnected and efficient DeFi ecosystem for everyone.

We are excited to embark on this next phase of our journey and invite you to join us in building a more unified, intuitive, and innovative future.