Top Algorand Projects to Watch in 2025

Algorand is becoming a top choice for decentralized finance as new dApps (Decentralized applications) and developers are building on top of the Algorand ecosystem.

Over the past year, Algorand TVL (Total value locked) has increased substantially as staking rewards were re-introduced to the ecosystem in January 2025, marking a new era for ALGO. 

Let’s dive into the Algorand ecosystem and explore DeFi options on the network from decentralized financial apps bringing yield opportunities to promising DeFi tokens bringing value to Algorand’s upcoming decentralized financial landscape. 

Algorand DeFi in 2025

DeFi on Algorand has been on a come-up throughout 2024. According to DeFiLlama, Algorand DeFi TVL reached $216 million in December 2024.

Algorand has been a solution for multiple use cases for major institutional-compliant companies and web3 projects including TravelX, FIFA NFTs, and HesabPay.

On TravelX, the Algorand network is used to facilitate the creation and distribution of airline tickets as non-fungible tokens, giving users greater options when it comes to how they want to use their tickets.

For HesabPay, the Algorand blockchain is used to streamline payments in regions with developing economies, allowing users to make fast payments with extremely cheap transaction fees. 

With the re-introduction of staling rewards, Algorand has seen an uptick in users with over 5,000 mainnet nodes running on Algorand. 

Let’s explore the current state of Algorand DeFi and how the future of ALGO decentralized finance may transform into in 2025. 

Top Algorand DeFi Projects

Lofty 

Lofty is a decentralized marketplace offering fractional ownership in tokenized real-estate rental properties. On the Lofty app, users can trade fractional ownership in real estate via the Algorand network.

Rent is paid daily to active Lofty users, based on the amount of non-fungible tokens of a particular property that an investor currently holds with users being able to select which cryptocurrency they want to receive their rent in.

The platform offers an inclusive way for crypto investors to diversify into US real estate with documentation reports on properties being available to users before they make an investment.

Thanks to Algorand and Lofty, barriers to entering into real estate investing have been lowered while still maintaining security and value. In 2024, Loft generated over $2 million in rental income to investors.

According to Algorand and Lofty, the platform had over 7,000 users in 2024 and tokenized 150 properties in 40 markets with new features and poperies being added continuously over time. 

A big benefit of the Lofty platform is making it possible for users to trade their tokens at any time with instant liquidity. 

From Lofty co-founder, Jerry Chu:

“If we could build a platform that not only helped them source available properties for sale but also allowed them to invest any amount they could afford instantaneously, then we would be able to truly disrupt the existing real estate investing process.”

Tinyman

Tinyman is a decentralized trading protocol on the Algorand blockchain. Liquidity providers, traders, and devs are able to make token swaps and pool liquidity at low costs.

The platform is a host to generous staking fees and liquidity options where traders can allocate tokens and earn from DEX (decentralized exchange) fees.

Tinyman’s tALGO token is the most traded liquidity token on Algorand due to Tinyman’s high usage and in the top 5 DeFi apps in the ALGO ecosystem.

By leveraging Algorand’s network capabilities, Tinyman is able to manage scalability issues with ease thanks to ALGO’s Pure Proof-of-stake consensus mechanism. 

According to Tinyman’s roadmap, liquid staking, DCA options, and limit orders are due in Q1 2025 followed by permissionless farms, enhancements to the $TINY token, and cross-chain swaps by the end of 2025.

Folks Finance

Folks Finance is a leading capital markets protocol on Algorand, the biggest DeFi app on ALGO with over $160 million in TVL. 

The multi-chain platform introduces streamlined lending and borrowing services to Algorand. ALGO users can easily deposit tokens into the Folks Finance platform and earn interest or use their tokens as collateral. 

The platform is also a host to liquid staking, on and off-ramps for easy funding, and cross-chain connectivity between other blockchains including Arbiturm, Ethereum, and Binance’s BNB Chain.

The platform’s multichain liquid staking token (LST), xALGO, can be used for staking with 0% fees and earning 2x platform points.

Folks Academy can help new users get to grip on the platform’s features as its community across Discord and Telegram is able to maintain continued interest in the platform’s developments. 

The future for Algorand DeFi

Decentralized finance on Algorand is gradually on its way up as the network’s leading protocols continue to build and add new features to their catalog.

Throughout 2025, we may witness the ALGO network grow substantially in DeFi usage and TVL, as applications such as Folks Finance, Tinyman, and Lofty, onboard DeFi participants from other networks. 

The Algorand Foundation may play a role in helping DeFi on ALGO thrive with new incentives, promotional activities, and more as the reintroduction of staking rewards has been a great success.