Treehouse Exclusive: Building DeFi’s First Fixed Income Layer with tAssets, DOR, and TREE
Key Takeaways:Treehouse is creating the fixed income layer for DeFi, introducing benchmark rates and tokenized yield-bearing assets to bring stability to crypto yields.The Decentralized Offered Rate (DOR) is an on-chain benchmark designed to standardize interest rates across DeFi—similar to LIBOR or SOFR in traditional finance.tAssets like tETH allow users to earn yield while staying fully composable across multiple protocols and chains.TREE is more than governance—it powers rate-setting, incentivizes accuracy, and funds ecosystem growth.1. For Binance users discovering TREE for the first time, what’s the simplest way to explain Treehouse?Treehouse is the fixed income layer for DeFi—we create benchmark interest rates through the Decentralized Offered Rate (DOR) and offer tokenized yield-bearing assets (tAssets) that deliver predictable returns across DeFi.2. DeFi has been about yield since day one. What gap made you decide DeFi needs its own fixed income layer?DeFi offers yield, but without structure. Rates vary wildly, there’s no unified benchmark, and risk-adjusted instruments are underdeveloped—making it hard to price and compare opportunities.In traditional finance, fixed income markets are built on reliable benchmarks, transparent pricing, and structured risk frameworks—elements missing in DeFi.With institutions showing growing interest, the need for predictable, transparent yield infrastructure is clear. Treehouse fills that gap with DOR for reference rates and tAssets for tokenized yield, enabling sustainable, composable capital formation.3. Since TREE launched, what’s been the most important milestone?Three stand out:Protocol adoption – tETH integrated with Aave, Compound, Pendle, Euler, and expanded to Mantle and Arbitrum, with Solana and Avalanche next.$500M+ TVL growth since September 2024 with 60,000+ tAsset holders.DOR launch – now live with daily published rates, panelist contributions, and integrations with operators like CoinDesk Indices and ether.fi. This will be the foundation for DeFi’s benchmark-driven fixed income markets.4. tETH is central to Treehouse. How does it work and where can users deploy it?tETH is a yield-bearing liquid staking token designed to unify ETH interest rates while staying fully composable.Its yield comes from:Base ETH staking rewards via wstETHMarket Efficiency Yield (MEY) from interest rate arbitragePoints rewards from campaigns like GoNuts Season 2Users can deploy tETH on Aave, Compound, Pendle, and Euler—earning yield while using it as collateral or liquidity.5. You’ve called DOR the on-chain LIBOR or SOFR. Why is a reference rate so important for DeFi?DOR publishes transparent benchmark rate curves on-chain, created from daily forecasts by a panel of experts using on-chain metrics, validator data, and proprietary models.Reference rates bring consistency, comparability, and pricing clarity to lending and structured products—critical for building scalable fixed income markets in DeFi.6. How can users verify rates, vault allocations, and returns?Everything is on-chain and viewable via the DOR Dashboard—panelist submissions, forecast accuracy, and historical rates.For tAssets, allocation strategies, staking flows, and APRs are visible through the Treehouse dApp, ensuring full transparency.7. What’s TREE’s utility beyond governance?TREE powers DOR participation (panelist staking, rate rewards), grants access to benchmark data, funds ecosystem incentives, and enables governance decisions for Treehouse’s future.8. The Pre-Deposit Vaults offering 50–75% APR got attention. How are these yields sustainable?They are time-limited bootstrapping incentives funded by protocol growth allocations—aligning TREE holders with DOR’s early expansion. Over time, yields will normalize to reflect protocol revenue and data monetization.9. Treehouse’s tokenomics use long vesting schedules. How does this promote stability?Over a third of TREE supply goes to the community. Team and investor allocations vest over years with cliffs, preventing short-term speculation and ensuring long-term alignment.10. How is Treehouse different from other yield protocols?Treehouse isn’t just a yield farm—it’s infrastructure. We provide the primitives for DeFi fixed income: tAssets, DOR, and TREE as the connective token. Our focus is sustainable, transparent yield—not short-term rewards.11. What’s next for tAssets?We’re expanding beyond ETH, Mantle, and Arbitrum to launch tAVAX, tSOL, and tBNB, bringing our fixed income layer to more chains.12. Will TREE see deeper Binance integrations?Yes—TREE is already in Binance Earn and the Booster Program. We’re exploring BNB Chain deployments for tBNB and co-marketing campaigns to educate users on real yield in DeFi.13. For TREE holders, what’s the most impactful action right now?Stake into Pre-Deposit Vaults to support DOR’s rate-setting and earn boosted APRs. Or deposit into tAsset vaults like tETH to earn MEY plus additional campaign rewards.14. Over the next six months, what should users watch for?Watch for DOR adoption—more panelists, protocol integrations, and institutional partners using DOR rates to launch interest rate swaps, fixed-rate products, and structured vaults.15. What’s Treehouse’s five-year vision?We aim to make DeFi’s fixed income market as large and structured as TradFi’s—driven by transparent benchmarks, reliable yield primitives, and infrastructure that powers the next generation of digital finance.About TreehouseTreehouse is building the fixed income layer for DeFi through Decentralized Offered Rates (DOR) and tAssets, enabling predictable, transparent, and composable yields across chains. With integrations into major protocols and a growing ecosystem, Treehouse is paving the way for benchmark-driven DeFi markets.
