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Ethereum Foundation Deposits Another $7.5M in ETH From Its Treasury into Morpho

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Ethereum Foundation Deposits Another $7.5M in ETH From Its Treasury into Morpho

The move follows the EF’s first deployment into the DeFi lending protocol in October, and is part of its updated treasury policy.

The Ethereum Foundation has deposited another 3,400 ETH — worth roughly $7.5 million at today’s prices, near $2,220 — into DeFi lending protocol Morpho, with 1,000 ETH allocated specifically to Morpho Vaults V2, according to a X post from the EF today, March 18.

The move follows an initial deployment in October 2025, when the EF put 2,400 ETH (~$5.3 million) and approximately $6 million in stablecoins into the protocol — bringing the Foundation’s total Morpho commitment to just under $19 million to date.

According to the post, the DeFi deployments are a direct expression of the EF’s refreshed treasury policy, first unveiled in June 2025, which codified a new “Defipunk” framework to guide on-chain capital allocation.

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As The Defiant reported at the time, the policy signaled that DeFi was no longer a sideshow for the Foundation — it was putting its ETH where its mouth is, prioritizing permissionless, immutable, audited protocols aligned with cypherpunk values over passive ETH sales to cover operations.

The EF also elaborated on why it chose to deploy in Morpho, and in particular praised Morpho Vaults V2, which launched in September. The Foundation cited the product’s GPL-2.0 open-source license — a deliberate choice, it noted, that makes the codebase permanently able to be audited and forked.

Crucially, Vaults V2’s core contracts are immutable: no admin keys, no upgrade mechanisms, no emergency switches. “The true cypherpunk infrastructure doesn’t ask you to trust its builders, and it removes the need entirely,” the Foundation wrote in its X announcement.

According to DefiLlama, Morpho is currently the second-largest DeFi lending protocol behind Aave, with a total total value locked (TVL) of over $6.9 billion. The protocol has attracted significant institutional interest in recent months, including a deal for Apollo Global Management — which manages nearly $940 billion in assets — to acquire up to 9% of Morpho’s 1 billion total token supply over four years.

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The EF framed the Morpho allocation as a question of ecosystem direction:

“What kind of DeFi ecosystem is Ethereum aiming to support, and how should it weigh short-term performance against long-term resilience and openness? Choices like licensing and architecture may seem small, but they shape which of these paths remain viable over time.”

The treasury move comes amid a busy stretch for the Foundation. Just last week, the EF published its 38-page EF Mandate, which sparked debate in the community over whether the Foundation risks taking a backseat at a critical moment for institutional adoption.

In February the EF also pledged to deepen its support for privacy-first, permissionless DeFi, forming a dedicated internal unit to support builders adhering to those principles. The Morpho deposit suggests the commitment is more than rhetorical.

This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.

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Crypto World

CME Group to Launch Avalanche and Sui Futures Contracts

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CME Group to Launch Avalanche and Sui Futures Contracts

CME Group is expanding its suite of cryptocurrency futures products, as more traditional finance (TradFi) entities launch regulated crypto trading products.

On Tuesday, CME Group announced plans to launch Avalanche (AVAX) and Sui (SUI) futures contracts on May 4, pending regulatory review.

Market participants will be able to trade both micro-sized and larger-sized contracts, including AVAX futures sized at 5,000 AVAX and Micro AVAX futures sized at 500 AVAX, as well as SUI futures sized at 50,000 SUI and Micro SUI futures sized at 5,000 SUI.

CME expands altcoin futures lineup

The news follows CME Group’s announcement in January of its plans to launch crypto futures contracts tied to Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK) and Stellar (XLM).

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The move is the latest sign that traditional financial firms are broadening their regulated crypto product offerings.

CME Group’s continued expansion of its crypto derivatives suite reflects “growing demand for regulated, institutionally-sound products in this asset class,” said Justin Young, CEO and Co-founder of Volatility Shares.

During an earnings call in early February, CME Group CEO Terry Duffy said the exchange is mulling plans to launch its own digital token that could operate on a decentralized network.

CME Group is the largest derivatives exchange by volume, and reported a record average daily trading volume of 28.1 million contracts in 2025, according to a Jan. 7 announcement.

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Related: Crypto exchanges gain as tokenized commodity market climbs to $7.7B

CME Group prepares to launch 24/7 trading for crypto products

More TradFi entities are exploring ways to issue tokenized investment products with 24/7 trading. CME said on Feb. 19 that its cryptocurrency futures and options products will begin trading 24/7 on May 29.

Unlike traditional stocks and equities constrained to trading hours, cryptocurrencies are natively tradable 24/7 through cryptocurrency exchanges and decentralized venues.

On March 24, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) announced it was partnering with tokenization platform Securitize to mint blockchain-based shares of stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), Cointelegraph reported. The initiative is part of its parent company, Intercontinental Exchange’s (ICE) plan for a tokenized securities venue designed for 24/7 trading and instant onchain settlement.

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Meanwhile, crypto exchanges are also venturing into tokenized TradFi products. Coinbase launched 24/7 stock perpetual futures for non-US traders on March 20, offering cash-settled exposure to major US stocks and indices, including Apple and Nvidia.

Crypto exchanges Binance and Kraken have also launched tokenized perpetual futures trading for non-US traders, along with other offshore platforms.

Magazine: Can Robinhood or Kraken’s tokenized stocks ever be truly decentralized?

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