Crypto influencer Ashen One just dropped a take that’s getting attention: in a sea of what he calls “nonsense L2s,” one chain actually makes sense — Katana.

In his latest post, he writes that Katana is basically a “DeFi chain” built by the same core team that created Polygon (the same Polygon that recently integrated with Revolut). With DeFi set to explode as more traders rotate into stables and look for real yield during uncertain markets, Ashen One believes chains like Katana are perfectly positioned.

October Report Highlights (the numbers that caught his eye)

• $600 M TVL reached in just a few months, with an almost perfect 99 % productive rate (meaning nearly all deposited assets are actually working and earning yield instead of sitting idle)
• Gas fees on par with Base and Solana — cheap and fast
• Protocols/apps on Katana earned $1.5 M in the month
• Network itself pulled in roughly $463 K in total revenue (Blockworks pegs the exact October figure at $462,934)

The monthly revenue chart (sourced from Blockworks Research) shows consistent growth since launch:

• June 2025 ≈ $200 K
• July ≈ $420 K
• August ≈ $400 K
• September ≈ $410 K
• October $462.9 K

Even with a small dip in broader yield rates across the market, Katana’s revenue held strong, proving the model works even when markets cool off.

Why this actually matters

Most L2s chase hype with airdrop farming and points. Katana instead built around one clear idea: every dollar of network revenue gets routed back to users through vaults so people earn higher real yield on their stables and blue-chips. The VaultBridge feature automatically puts bridged assets to work, and the numbers show users love it — 99 % of TVL is productive.

Ashen One’s closing line sums it up:

“in a world of nonsense L2s, I don’t know if you NEED one specifically for DeFi, but the market seems to be pointing that people do want one with Katana’s success”

He also mentions he’s happy to partner with projects like this when the product is legitimately useful, especially heading into what could be choppy markets where passive yield on stables becomes king again.

Whether Katana becomes the DeFi destination chain remains to be seen, but hitting half a million in monthly revenue with hundreds of millions in productive TVL only months after launch is the kind of traction most L2s can only dream of.

Keep an eye on this one — real usage, real revenue, and a clear value proposition in an increasingly crowded field.