S&P (SPGI.US) enters crypto lending: the $10 billion market welcomes the first independent risk assessment tool

According to Woofun AI, S&P Global (SPGI.US) officially launched the “Vault Risk Assessment” (VRA) tool to establish an independent evaluation system for the approximately $10 billion cryptocurrency loan vault market. This move marks the beginning of traditional financial rating agencies getting involved in the risk pricing process of decentralized financial infrastructure.

This tool is clearly defined as a non-credit rating and aims to analyze blockchain-based bond fund assets. Such vaults are responsible for collecting and lending deposits. The size of their assets has grown more than sixfold in two years, yet disclosure standards are uneven. The assessment covered six major areas: portfolio credit quality, liquidity imbalance, management situation, blockchain technology, related agreements, and security governance. Vault management determines the investment of funds, which directly affects depositors' ability to withdraw funds during market turmoil.

Woofun AI collated data and showed that the assessment helped investors quantify the possibility of loss, but did not comment on yield.

James Wimken, head of S&P's Global Ratings Services department, pointed out that the initial market was complex and unevenly disclosed, and there was an urgent need for standardized independent assessments. S&P is deepening its digital asset layout: it acquired audit firm OpenZeppelin in September and obtained a portion of the shares of data provider Kaiko; previously, it issued the first credit rating to the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Sky Protocol (formerly MakerDAO), and evaluated structured financial products supported by Bitcoin.

However, risks coexist, and in August Term Labs was attacked due to a vulnerability in the governance system, which led to the theft of approximately $8.5 million.

The regulatory level is also getting stricter. In July, US Securities and Exchange Commission official Hester Pierce warned that crypto vaults and loan agreements may be subject to federal securities laws. Independent ratings are expected to help vaults gain approval from banks and funds, provided they meet third-party risk assessment requirements. Future competition will focus on whether managers rely on S&P ratings rather than just high yields to attract capital.