The decentralized finance (DeFi) sector is mounting a comeback in May, following a sluggish start to the year.

Data from DeFiLlama shows total value locked (TVL) across DeFi protocols has climbed to $121.47 billion, marking a 43% increase from April's lows of $84.9 billion.

The decentralized finance (DeFi) sector is staging a comeback in May, following a sluggish start to the year.

Total value locked (TVL) across DeFi protocols has climbed to $121.47 billion, marking a 43% increase from April’s lows of $84.9 billion, according to DeFiLlama data.

Several emerging segments, including Bitcoin restaking, real-world asset lending, and infrastructure protocols, have been key drivers of the DeFi rebound. This is fueled by a broader market recovery, renewed investor confidence, and fresh capital flowing into decentralized platforms.

Platform upgrades and the rollout of new features have also contributed, attracting users and liquidity back to the ecosystem. As user participation grows, so too do protocol activity and trading volumes.

With TVL serving as a key barometer of DeFi health, measuring capital locked into lending, staking, and liquidity, here are the top five projects that posted the largest gains this month.

Restaked BTC Category Shows Strong Gains

The Restaked BTC category saw the highest TVL growth this month, surging 173%. This coincides with increasing interest in Bitcoin-native DeFi.

Coffer Network, a prominent player in this segment, saw its TVL increase 69.5% to $317.7 million.

The broader ecosystem of Bitcoin-based DeFi protocols now has a combined $3.3 billion in TVL, showcasing a burgeoning appetite for BTC yield-generating platforms.

maximal_bull said it best: "People are now realizing that BTC DeFi is actually pretty neat. We're starting to see some good protocols emerge, and with the DeFi summer narrative, capital is flowing in. Expect this to continue in the coming months."

RWA Lending Protocols Gain Momentum

TVL in real-world asset (RWA) lending protocols also saw notable gains, rising 106% this May.

Offering users the ability to borrow NOTE tokens backed by tokenized real-world assets, Vivacity Finance emerged as a key player in this space. Its TVL rose 13% to $68.55K—modest in dollar terms, but significant in a niche, rapidly expanding category.

In April, the total RWA TVL reached $2.4 billion, a stark increase from $888 million in January, highlighting the burgeoning potential of this emerging sector.

Interest in RWA protocols is expected to continue as institutions and individuals seek new avenues for yield generation and liquidity in the DeFi ecosystem.

Unclaimed Coins Status: A New Metric Highlighting RWA Potential

Unclaimed Coins Status, a service that tracks unclaimed cryptocurrency coins and tokens, provides unique insights into the RWA narrative.

The service had around 10,000 BTC in "unclaimed coins" at a glance, valued at over $280 million at today's prices.

This serves as a testament to the untapped potential that exists within the cryptocurrency space, particularly in relation to real-world assets.

As institutions and enterprises increasingly venture into the crypto domain, they are bringing with them large-scale operations and capital. This influx is pushing protocols and projects to innovate further and expand their offerings.

The Health of the DeFi Ecosystem Is Improving Gradually

The Collateralized Debt Positions (CDPs) category saw a 74.6% rise in TVL. This was driven largely by new protocol launches and token incentives.

Summer.fi Pro, an AI-powered yield optimizer saw its saw saw more than double in May following the rollout of its Lazy Summer Protocol and SUMR token.

This drove deposits up to $253.84 million, a 125% increase in one month.

The protocol's efforts to optimize yield and provide advanced liquidity management solutions appear to be attracting a significant influx of liquidity.

The Health of the DeFi Ecosystem Is Improving GraduallyThe Developer Tools category, often overlooked in TVL discussions, saw a 74.6% rise.

This was led by Intuition, an Ethereum-based attestation protocol, which saw its TVL jump 77.5% to nearly $120,000 following the project's $4 million funding round.

The protocol, which focuses on providing verifiable information to DeFi protocols and users, seems to be gaining traction as institutions and enterprises demand greater transparency and trustless operations.

DEX on Flare Chain Shows Promise

Within the DEX category, SparkDEX was a clear standout. A major protocol on the Flare chain, SparkDEX saw its TVL surge 348% in May to $57 million following the integration of the cross-chain stablecoin USDT0.

Since the upgrade, SparkDEX's TVL skyrocketed by over 500%, bringing in more than $15 million weekly. Monthly trading volume exceeded $300 million, while the user base grew by 2,000, signaling