Katana Network, the DeFi-native blockchain incubated by GSR and Polygon Labs, has officially launched its mainnet, opening the doors to users and setting a new standard for the entire sector.
In less than a month from the public presentation, the network has already gathered over 240 million dollars in “productive TVL”, a result that distinctly sets it apart from other blockchains currently on the market.
The revolutionary concept of Katana’s “productive TVL” in DeFi
In the DeFi landscape, the most used parameter to measure the success of a network is the TVL (Total Value Locked).
However, this metric often proves misleading: many assets remain inactive, without generating real value for the chain or for the applications built on it.
Katana overturns the paradigm by introducing the concept of productive TVL, which is the value effectively employed in productive DeFi strategies.
On Katana, every deposited asset is put to work from day one, transforming passive capital into an active engine of growth.
To address the structural problems of DeFi – such as the scarcity of liquidity, reliance on unsustainable incentives, and the continuous outflow of capital – Katana adopts advanced financial instruments.
The first is VaultBridge, which allows generating yield on assets deposited on Ethereum, routing them towards remunerative positions.
The second is the chain-owned liquidity (CoL) model, which enables the network to retain 100% of the sequencer fees and convert them into permanent and self-sustaining liquidity reserves.
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The launch of Katana is accompanied by significant yield farming incentives, including token rewards for liquidity providers on platforms like Morpho and Sushi.
The network structure multiplies the sources of yield, combining returns from VaultBridge, chain-owned liquidity, and AUSD treasury yields, to offer sustainable and higher APRs.
Users are incentivized to actively participate: only those who deploy their assets in the core DeFi applications can maximize gains.
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Katana, although built on Ethereum, is agnostic regarding asset ecosystems. Thanks to the collaboration with Jito, a high-performance liquid staking protocol, the network aims to offer the highest returns even on assets outside of Ethereum, such as SOL.
A network designed for capital efficiency
On Katana, every asset deposited in apps like Morpho or Sushi – or used in applications built on them – generates real yield through curated strategies, coordinated DeFi primitives, and native incentive systems.
VaultBridge directs assets like ETH, USDC, USDT, and wBTC towards productive positions on Ethereum, whose yield can be reinvested in Katana’s DeFi pools to reward the most active users.
The chain-owned liquidity model allows for directly reinvesting the sequencer fees into the liquidity pools, ensuring a stable and permanent base for users and developers, regardless of bull and bear market cycles.
Additionally, Agora’s AUSD stablecoin captures the yield from U.S. Treasury and repo off-chain, redirecting it to further increase the yield in DeFi pools.
“Katana represents the culmination of the value created by blockchains in DeFi,” says Marc Boiron, co-contributor of the network.
“By aligning the network’s incentives with user outcomes, we create a sustainable model that benefits both individual DeFi users and institutional investors.
All sequencer fees return to chain-owned liquidity, creating the depth and stability needed by both retail and institutional entities.”
According to the data from growthepie.com, the Layer 2 of Ethereum have generated significant net fees from the sequencers in the last year: approximately 73 million dollars for Base, 19 million for Arbitrum, and 7 million for Optimism, after deducting the settlement costs on Ethereum.
The native token KAT is the beating heart of the Katana ecosystem. Users can earn KAT immediately through liquidity mining on core apps like Morpho and Sushi, accumulate them in their wallets, and lock them to obtain vKAT and participate in staking.
The token will become transferable at the time of listing on exchanges, expected within a few months of the mainnet launch and in any case no later than February 20, 2026.
With the growth of the network and the increase of network effects, KAT holders will be able to contribute to the security of the network and earn a share of the sequencer fees, VaultBridge yields, and the revenues generated by the stablecoin.
Strategic Partnerships and Interoperability
Unlike traditional blockchains, which fragment liquidity among competing protocols, Katana concentrates liquidity on selected, high-quality DeFi primitives.
At launch, the network integrates Morpho for lending and borrowing, Sushi for spot trading, and partnerships with leading providers such as Agora (AUSD stablecoin), Lombard (liquid staked BTC), ether.fi (staked ETH), Jito (staked SOL), BitVault (BTC-backed money), and Universal for cross-chain minting of assets.
Thanks to the Universal partner, Katana enables on-chain trading of blue-chip crypto assets like SOL, XRP, SUI and others right at launch.
The integration with Coinbase Prime also allows minting natively on Katana of any other custodial asset, without the need for initial liquidity on DEX.
“While other chains measure success by the number of apps, we focus on capital efficiency, active users, and transaction volume,” emphasizes Jakob Palmstierna, President of GSR.
“Users do not need millions of financial apps, but the best ones that work together to improve yield. And this is exactly what Katana offers.”
Katana, a graduate of the Agglayer Breakout Program, has announced an airdrop of approximately 15% of the KAT tokens to POL stakers, including liquid staking tokens, as a gesture of returning value to the Polygon ecosystem.
The Katana Foundation, the non-profit organization behind the project, aims to offer the best possible DeFi experience to every type of user.
Thanks to innovative mechanisms like VaultBridge, Chain-Owned Liquidity, and a focus on excellence protocols, Katana aims to maximize value for active users, overcoming the limitations of traditional blockchain models.
