- Following its developer launch in November 2025, Aqua now presents a risk-controlled various to DeFi’s pool-based mannequin.
- 1inch unveils a Merkl-powered liquidity incentive program for Aqua, funded with 10 million 1INCH by the 1inch Basis and 500k USDC from 1inch DAO.
- Aqua goes stay throughout 13 EVM chains from day one.
ROAD TOWN, British Virgin Islands, July 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 1inch, the main DeFi ecosystem, proclaims the total public launch of Aqua, a self-custodial shared liquidity layer that permits liquidity suppliers to make use of the identical pockets stability throughout a number of positions with out locking property in liquidity swimming pools.
Following its developer launch in November 2025, Aqua at the moment presents one of many first risk-controlled alternate options to DeFi’s conventional pool-based mannequin, enabling extra capital-efficient liquidity provisioning.
1inch Aqua works as a registry: a consumer connects their pockets to approve a token stability and create liquidity positions that may entry that stability. The Aqua protocol tracks that stability, and when it receives a swap order that meets the factors of the place, it pulls the requested tokens from the pockets and pushes again obtained tokens and charges in a single atomic transaction. In any other case, the consumer’s tokens stay of their pockets and utterly below their management.
“The liquidity provisioning house is damaged, however you solely see how damaged as soon as there’s an alternate. Immediately, that various has arrived. With Aqua, liquidity suppliers not have to simply accept the inefficient pool construction they’ve put up with for years,” mentioned Sergej Kunz, 1inch co-founder. “DeFi doesn’t simply want extra liquidity. It wants extra helpful liquidity, energetic wherever demand seems. We constructed Aqua so suppliers get that attain with out giving up custody: your tokens keep in your pockets till the second a swap fills.”
Alongside the product launch, 1inch Community Incentives goes stay — a liquidity reward program for Aqua, led by Degensoft Ltd (BVI) and delivered by way of Merkl. The 1inch Basis has dedicated 10 million 1INCH in supplier rewards, and an extra 500,000 USDC increase from the 1inch DAO. The initiative is designed to speed up liquidity progress and swap exercise throughout supported pairs. Because of this, liquidity suppliers not solely profit from Aqua’s improved expertise but additionally have the chance to earn further rewards. Program phrases, markets and safeguards are set out within the printed marketing campaign configuration.
In line with 1inch, the present pool based mostly system is a serious limiting issue on DeFi’s potential to scale and convey TradFi capital on chain. For liquidity suppliers, the present mannequin of depositing into swimming pools means handing over custody, whereas energetic capital will get unfold skinny throughout protocols, pairs and value ranges. The dimensions of the issue is stark: per on-chain analysis by Dune commissioned by 1inch, 85% of concentrated liquidity throughout main DEXs was underutilized in H1 2026, roughly $1.6 billion of the $1.84 billion tracked. That features about $542 million sitting absolutely out of vary in a median week, leading to an estimated $150 million in charges foregone per 12 months.
By Aqua, 1inch is showcasing a extra environment friendly mannequin for shared liquidity, permitting the identical pockets stability to again a number of positions concurrently. In contrast to the normal mannequin, the place liquidity have to be cut up throughout a number of swimming pools and positions, Aqua allows a single stability to help a number of quotes without delay. For instance, a $100,000 stability can help three positions collectively quoting $300,000 of liquidity, with the potential to cite extra. The underlying tokens stay out there to each place always; nothing is borrowed, and any swap can solely execute towards the property truly held within the pockets.
A place on Aqua might be full vary, concentrated or pegged, relying on the chosen pair and place sort. A consumer can open and shut positions themselves, with no lock-up. Their publicity is capped by the tokens they really maintain, not by the theoretical mixed dimension of each place they create. If their pockets can’t cowl a swap, Aqua merely doesn’t name on their tokens.
From at the moment, customers can create positions throughout 13 EVM chains, together with Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Robinhood Chain and BNB Chain. Aqua additionally launches with quite a lot of further functionalities, together with a liquidity leaderboard, an incentives display, liquidity map visualizations, batch place creation, supplier profiles with cross-chain positions, sub-wallets, and an AI-assisted liquidity provisioning movement through the 1inch Enterprise MCP with protected batch deployment, coming quickly.
Aqua has undergone eight impartial safety audits carried out by OpenZeppelin, Bailsec, Hashlock, Hexens, MixBytes, Nethermind, Theori, and Decurity. Mixed with its absolutely self-custodial design, which by no means holds consumer tokens, a swap can solely transfer property which can be truly within the supplier’s pockets in the meanwhile it fills. Revocation stops new fills as quickly because it confirms on-chain. Aqua can also be shielded from JIT payment sniping by design, as every place has a single proprietor, thus there is no such thing as a shared payment second bots can capitalize on. Whereas Aqua’s design retains publicity bounded and suppliers in charge of their very own tokens, swap charges are usually not assured, costs can transfer towards a place (impermanent loss), and suppliers bear market and smart-contract danger.
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About 1inch
1inch accelerates decentralized finance with a seamless crypto buying and selling expertise for 27M customers. Past being the highest platform for low-cost, environment friendly token swaps with $100M+ in each day trades, 1inch presents a variety of progressive instruments, together with a safe self-custodial pockets, a portfolio tracker for managing digital property, a devoted enterprise portal giving entry to its cutting-edge know-how, and even a debit card for simple crypto spending. By repeatedly innovating, 1inch is simplifying DeFi for everybody.
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Aqua entails danger, together with lack of funds. It’s constructed for knowledgeable customers — do your personal analysis. Not monetary recommendation. Incentive rewards are variable, not assured, and topic to this system’s printed phrases.
