Aave, a DeFi protocol, is set to launch an "Aave Network" chain following its V4 upgrade. Stani Kulechov, Aave's founder, announced this on May 27, suggesting the launch could happen next year or sooner. While details are scarce, Aave is currently the largest lending protocol in DeFi with $13.2 billion in assets locked, according to DeFillama.

Earlier in the month, Aave Labs proposed the Aave Network as part of its 2030 strategic plan, envisioning it as the main hub for Aave and GHO while maintaining a multichain approach. The proposal includes using the GHO stablecoin for gas fees and the AAVE token for staking by decentralized validators and sequencers. Aave Labs also confirmed the network's security will be based on Ethereum, despite ongoing evaluations of Layer 1 and Layer 2 blockchains.

The crypto community has responded positively to the Aave Network plans. Jason Ma of Axelar Foundation highlighted that successful apps will eventually launch their own chains. Marc Zeller of the Aave Chan Initiative predicted Aave could become the largest Ethereum Layer with a market size of $20.5 billion, surpassing other Ethereum-based layer-2 networks and ranking as the third-largest chain after Ethereum and Tron.

Additionally, Aave's parent company, Avara, has announced the Lens Network to expand the Lens Protocol, built on zkSync technology, with Kulechov advocating for launching appchains.