I’ve been paying attention to a quiet shift in DeFi lately: the best protocols aren’t trying to squeeze more leverage out of the same collateral… they’re trying to upgrade the collateral itself.
That’s why @Falcon Finance keeps standing out to me. The whole idea is simple but powerful: turn many kinds of assets into usable liquidity without forcing you to sell your long-term positions. You deposit collateral, mint USDf with a conservative buffer, and stay exposed to what you actually believe in. That “don’t sell, just unlock” mindset feels way more like how real balance sheets work. 
What’s new (and honestly pretty bullish for the direction they’re taking) is how fast Falcon is widening the quality of collateral:
• USDf expanded onto Base (big distribution move for everyday DeFi usage). 
• Tokenized stocks (xStocks like TSLAx/NVDAx/SPYx) added as collateral, which is basically TradFi exposure becoming onchain liquidity. 
• Centrifuge RWAs (JAAA + JTRSY) integrated, bringing institutional-style credit/treasury collateral into the mix. 
And on the yield side, I like that they’re pushing options beyond just “farm incentives,” like the FF staking vaults paying rewards in USDf—steady, clean, and easy to plan around. 
