1inch Unveils Aqua, a New Era in DeFi Liquidity

1inch, a leading name in decentralized finance, has publicly launched Aqua, following a developer phase. Aqua emerges as a risk-controlled alternative to conventional DeFi models, functioning across 13 EVM chains from the outset. It's designed to enable self-custodial shared liquidity, allowing liquidity providers to utilize a single wallet balance across various positions without the necessity of liquidity pools.

The launch includes a Merkl-powered liquidity incentive initiative, funded by the 1inch Foundation and DAO, aimed at growing liquidity and swap activity. Aqua seeks to resolve inefficiencies of the existing pool-based system, which disperses active capital ineffectively across protocols and price ranges. According to 1inch, this model has left a significant portion of liquidity underutilized.

Aqua allows multiple positions using the same balance, enhancing capital efficiency. Each position is controlled by its owner, negating joint fee vulnerability. Despite its streamlined management and self-custodial nature, users must acknowledge inherent market and contract risks.