The total value locked (TVL) in the decentralized finance sector has surged to $153 billion, the highest since May 2022, as investors return in search of yield. 

PayPal will soon let U.S. merchants accept over 100 cryptocurrencies at checkout, part of a new feature aimed at lowering the cost and complexity of cross-border payments.

Fidelity National Information Services (FIS) is partnering with Circle to bring USDC payments to U.S. banks, allowing them to offer stablecoin-based transfers both domestically and internationally.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• DeFi TVL Hits Three-Year High of $153B
• PayPal to Let U.S. Merchants Accept 100+ Cryptos
• FIS to Let U.S. Banks Use Circle’s USDC for Payments and Transfers

DeFi TVL Hits Three-Year High of $153B

The total value locked (TVL) in the decentralized finance sector has surged to $153 billion, the highest since May 2022, as investors return in search of yield. 

Ethereum leads the pack, holding nearly 60% of that total, thanks to staking activity and renewed institutional investment. Protocols like Lido and Aave alone hold over $65 billion in assets.

But staking and lending aren’t the only plays. Users are turning to complex strategies like restaking and looping between Euler and Spark to earn as much as 25% annually on stablecoins like USDC.

Solana’s TVL jumped 23% to $12 billion in July, with Avalanche and Sui not far behind, growing 33% and 39% respectively. Bitcoin’s DeFi footprint remains small, climbing 9%.

PayPal to Let U.S. Merchants Accept 100+ Cryptos

PayPal will soon let U.S. merchants accept over 100 cryptocurrencies at checkout, part of a new feature aimed at lowering the cost and complexity of cross-border payments.

Called "Pay with Crypto," the service connects wallets like MetaMask and Coinbase to PayPal’s platform at checkout, allowing customers to pay in bitcoin, ether, XRP, USDC, and other major assets. Merchants receive U.S. dollars, settled near instantly, while PayPal takes a 0.99% fee, roughly a tenth of the typical international credit card charge.

Chriss offered a scenario: a shopper in Guatemala buying from a seller in Oklahoma. Using crypto rails, that merchant avoids delays, boosts profit margins, and can earn 4% yield by holding balances in PYUSD, PayPal’s dollar-backed stablecoin.

The service expands PayPal’s broader crypto push, which includes its own stablecoin and partnerships promoting global stablecoin use. 

FIS to Let U.S. Banks Use Circle’s USDC for Payments and Transfers

Fidelity National Information Services (FIS) is partnering with Circle to bring USDC payments to U.S. banks, allowing them to offer stablecoin-based transfers both domestically and internationally.

The service will plug Circle’s dollar-backed stablecoin into FIS’s money movement hub, which links banks to a range of payment rails. It’s set to go live before the end of the year.

The move follows new U.S. stablecoin legislation and mirrors a similar effort by FIS rival Fiserv, which also plans to support USDC.

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