Key highlights:

  • Payward acquires an undisclosed amount of AAVE tokens through an affiliated investment fund, with potential for further purchases and collaboration
  • The investment deepens Payward’s DeFi ties as Aave holds approximately $33 billion in net deposits and $12 billion in active loans
  • AAVE trades around $129.48 after falling 29.1% in a month, with resistance at $131 to $135 and support near $100

Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has now acquired an undisclosed amount of AAVE tokens through an investment fund affiliated with the company, marking another step in its expansion into the DeFi market.

According to an announcement from Aave Labs on November 5, Payward's Digital Asset Special Investments I, LP, alongside its asset management clients, purchased AAVE through secondary market transactions.

The company said it could make additional purchases in the future and is exploring further collaboration opportunities with Aave.

What Payward's Aave investment means for DeFi and AAVE holders

The investment comes as Payward expands its asset management business to offer clients exposure to digital assets, structured yield, and tokenized financial instruments.

Gurpreet Oberoi, Payward's vice president of asset management and institutional, said the investment reflects the company's long-term interest in on-chain credit markets and increasing client demand for exposure to DeFi infrastructure.

Aave is the largest on-chain lending network, allowing users to deposit cryptocurrencies and stablecoins to earn interest or borrow against their holdings through smart contracts.

According to the announcement, the protocol has approximately $33 billion in net deposits and $12 billion in active loans, placing it among the largest lending platforms in the cryptocurrency market.

The AAVE token gives holders governance rights, allowing them to participate in decisions concerning protocol upgrades, network parameters, and the community treasury.

Its role in the ecosystem has also become a central part of discussions about how Aave generates value for tokenholders as its business expands.

Under the Aave Will Win framework approved earlier in 2026, Aave Labs committed to directing revenue generated by Aave-branded products to the Aave DAO treasury, alongside the network fees already received by the community.

The arrangement is intended to bring revenue from the company's products closer to the tokenholder-governed ecosystem.

Payward's investment also follows earlier discussions between the two companies. Negotiations reported in June 2026 involved a proposed purchase of 250,000 AAVE tokens and a 15% equity stake in Aave Group at a reported valuation of $385 million.

However, Thursday's announcement disclosed a token acquisition without mentioning an equity investment, leaving the size of the completed purchase undisclosed.

Kraken's Aave ties deepen as both companies expand their DeFi ambitions

Kraken’s relationship with Aave includes DeFi Earn and a white-label deployment of Aave’s lending infrastructure on Ink, its layer-2 network.

The latest acquisition comes against an existing relationship involving access to Aave's lending technology and potential opportunities to bring more users into onchain financial services.

Payward expanded through acquisitions, buying derivatives exchange Bitnomial for up to $550 million and completing its Reap acquisition in July in a deal worth up to $600 million.

Meanwhile, Aave is developing its lending infrastructure through V4, which separates lending markets and risks, and Aave Horizon, a tokenized real-world asset borrowing platform with reportedly more than $570 million in deposits.

Aave's activity remains substantial, as its total value locked (TVL) stands at approximately $17.06 billion, with active loans around $12.08 billion.

The protocol generated approximately $39.63 million in fees over 30 days, although protocol revenue was lower at $5.15 million.

Can AAVE recover as its price slips below key technical levels?

The AAVE token recently traded around $129.48 after retreating from above $136, representing a decline of approximately 3% over 24 hours.

Its price was down 10.8% over 14 days and 29.1% over the past month, while its yearly decline stood at approximately 34%.

The daily chart also shows a shift in momentum following AAVE's rally towards $185 in October.

After forming an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern earlier in the year, with its lowest point near $60 in June, the token broke above its previous resistance and entered a strong upward move.

However, the subsequent rejection around $185 has placed the price inside a descending channel.

AAVE has since fallen below its rising moving average, indicating weakening short-term momentum. The $131 to $135 region now represents an immediate resistance area, while the $100 level remains an important support zone.

A sustained recovery above the descending channel could improve the technical outlook, while continued selling could expose the lower support.