Uniswap UNI and Aave AAVE Drive DeFi Fee Recovery to $600M as Token Buybacks Gain Momentum

Increased fee revenue across major DeFi platforms indicates traders are returning to fundamentally strong projects. September revenues surged to approximately $600 million, nearly doubling from March's $340 million low. Uniswap, the leading decentralized exchange, and Aave, the prominent lending protocol, fueled this significant recovery. Ethena's synthetic dollar project also ranked among top revenue generators according to The Block Research data. Protocols are now focusing on enhancing token utility and redirecting value to holders through innovative mechanisms. Uniswap's governance approved $165 million in foundation funding while preparing for the anticipated "fee switch" that will distribute trading revenue to UNI token holders upon Unichain v4 launch. Aave has implemented a different approach, with DAO providers establishing a framework that channels surplus revenue into systematic buybacks and ecosystem reserves, replacing temporary treasury adjustments with consistent accrual policies. This strengthens the connection between platform usage and AAVE token performance. Ethena employs a more direct model, converting fees into yield through its USDe and sUSDe systems and distributing them directly to holders as total value locked increases. Recent integrations with Aave and Pendle have positioned Ethena among DeFi's top revenue generators. While UNI, AAVE, and ENA tokens have followed market trends without significant outperformance, their strong fundamentals and fee growth provide trading desks with valuation frameworks beyond mere volatility metrics.