Promising Projects to Watch on SUI Blockchain: Top Picks Across DeFi

The Sui blockchain has quickly emerged as a hub for Decentralized Finance (DeFi) applications, driven by its high-throughput architecture and low transaction fees. The ecosystem’s Total Value Locked (TVL) across DeFi has surpassed $2 billion, reflecting strong investor and user engagement, according to data from DeFiLlama. 

For those exploring the promising projects on Sui based on TVL, active users, and core utilities, this article highlights four standout protocols that demonstrate the network’s technical strengths in DeFi, liquidity provision, and lending. Each project, like the prominent protocol Suilend, leverages Sui’s Move programming language and parallel transaction processing to deliver efficient and scalable solutions for users and developers alike.

DeepBook: Sui’s Liquidity Backbone

DeepBook is a core DeFi infrastructure on Sui, functioning as a fully on-chain central limit order book (CLOB) protocol with a TVL of $17 million and a market cap of $480 million for its native DEEP token, priced at $0.13. Since its launch, DeepBook has processed over $12 billion in total volume and served more than 10 million users, burning 18.2 million DEEP tokens from trading fees. Its version 3 release in October 2024 introduced enhanced liquidity features, solidifying its role as Sui’s liquidity layer.

Key Features of DeepBook

• On-Chain CLOB: DeepBook provides a decentralized order book for efficient price execution, enabling institutional traders and DeFi protocols to access deep liquidity with minimal slippage.
• DEEP Token Utility: The DEEP token supports governance, offers fee rebates, and incentivizes liquidity provision.
• Scalable Trading: Integrated with Sui’s protocol, DeepBook handles order matching, routing, and settlement on-chain, supporting high-frequency trading strategies.

DeepBook capitalizes on Sui’s parallel transaction processing, which achieves up to 297,000 transactions per second (TPS) with sub-second finality. This performance enables DeepBook to execute complex trading strategies without delays, a critical advantage for institutional and retail traders. 

The protocol’s integration with Sui’s native USDC, introduced in October 2024 via Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP), enhances liquidity and interoperability, making it a vital component of Sui’s DeFi ecosystem.

NAVI Protocol: Versatile Lending Platform

NAVI Protocol is a leading lending platform on Sui, with a TVL of $812 million according to Defillama, as of writing, making it one of the ecosystem’s most prominent DeFi projects, alongside the undisputed champion Suilend. It offers a suite of financial products, including lending, staking, and DEX functionalities, catering to users seeking yield generation and liquidity. NAVI’s universal approach and stable performance make it a go-to platform for Sui users exploring DeFi opportunities.

Key Features of NAVI Protocol

• Lending and Borrowing: Users can lend assets to earn interest or borrow against collateral, with smart contracts defining loan terms and ensuring security.
• Liquid Staking: NAVI allows users to stake tokens in liquidity pools, earning rewards from transaction fees paid by traders.
• DEX Integration: The protocol incorporates decentralized exchange functionalities, enabling token swaps and price speculation.
• User-Friendly Access: NAVI requires only a Sui wallet connection, eliminating the need for KYC, bank cards, or email registration.

NAVI benefits from Sui’s low transaction fees and high bandwidth, which support seamless lending and borrowing operations. The blockchain’s object-centric model allows NAVI to manage assets as distinct objects, reducing bottlenecks and enabling parallel processing of loan and staking transactions. 

This efficiency, combined with Sui’s developer-friendly ecosystem and support from Mysten Labs, positions NAVI as a robust platform for DeFi users seeking diverse financial tools.

Scallop: High-Yield Lending and Staking

Scallop is a lending and borrowing protocol on Sui, ranking among the top five DeFi lending protocols on SUI, behind Suilend, NAVI Lending, and AlphaLend, according to DeFiLlama. Offering high-interest lending, low-fee borrowing, and liquid staking, Scallop has become a key player in Sui’s DeFi landscape, attracting users with its composable tokens and premium bond offerings.

Key Features of Scallop

• High-Interest Lending: Users can lend assets to earn competitive interest rates, with APYs typically ranging from 10% to 15% for Sui-based products.
• Low-Fee Borrowing: Scallop offers cost-effective borrowing with minimal fees, leveraging Sui’s low gas costs.
• Liquid Staking: Users can stake tokens in liquidity pools to earn rewards from trading fees, enhancing yield opportunities.
• Composable Tokens: Scallop’s tokens can be integrated into other DeFi applications, increasing flexibility for developers and users.

Scallop leverages Sui’s high-throughput architecture and Move-based smart contracts, ensuring secure and efficient transaction processing. The protocol’s ability to offer high-yield lending and low-fee borrowing aligns with Sui’s low-cost environment, where gas fees are typically under $0.01. Additionally, Sui’s object-oriented model enables Scallop to manage complex financial products, such as composable tokens, with minimal latency, making it a key player in Sui’s lending sector.

Bucket Protocol: Stablecoin Lending Solution

Bucket Protocol is a Collateralized Debt Position (CDP) protocol on Sui, enabling users to collateralize assets to borrow $BUCK, a stablecoin, at a fixed low cost. While specific TVL figures are not detailed, Bucket’s prominence in Sui’s DeFi ecosystem suggests significant locked value, driven by its role in stablecoin lending and liquidity provision.

Key Features of Bucket Protocol

• CDP Lending: Users can lock assets as collateral to borrow $BUCK, providing a stable medium for DeFi transactions.
• Fixed Borrowing Costs: Bucket offers predictable, low-cost borrowing, appealing to users seeking financial stability.
• Liquidity Provision: The protocol supports liquidity for Sui-based assets, facilitating seamless value transfers.
• Stablecoin Integration: Integration with native USDC and other stablecoins enhances transaction utility and user trust.

Bucket leverages Sui’s scalability and low-latency transactions to offer efficient CDP lending, ensuring users can borrow $BUCK without delays or high costs. The protocol benefits from Sui’s integration of stablecoins, including USDC, AUSD, FDUSD, and USDY, in 2024, which enhances liquidity and supports lending activities. Sui’s parallel execution model enables Bucket to handle multiple collateralized transactions simultaneously, making it a crucial component of Sui’s DeFi infrastructure.

Conclusion: Capabilities of Sui’s Top Projects

Overall, these four protocols demonstrate the network’s capacity to support scalable, efficient DeFi applications. DeepBook offers a robust CLOB for trading, NAVI delivers versatile lending and staking solutions, Scallop excels in high-yield lending, and Bucket enables stablecoin borrowing. 

Together, these protocols leverage Sui’s infrastructure to deliver secure, user-friendly financial tools. With a TVL exceeding $2 billion and over 1.7 million daily active addresses as of May 2025, Sui’s ecosystem supports a diverse range of DeFi functionalities, including trading, lending, and liquidity provision, catering to both retail and institutional users.

Sources

• DefiLama: https://defillama.com/chain/sui 
• TokenInsight. “Top Projects on the Sui Blockchain in 2025.” https://tokeninsight.com/en/research/analysts-pick/top-projects-on-the-sui-blockchain-in-2025
• The Block. “Scallop Protocol on Sui Hits Record Revenue.” https://www.theblock.co/press-releases/348756/scallop-protocol-on-sui-hits-record-revenue-solidifying-leadership-in-defi-lending