Curve Finance took the top two positions in Santiment’s latest development activity ranking for lending-related crypto projects. The index is built from GitHub submissions, updates, and repository actions recorded over a rolling 30-day period, aiming to show how actively teams are building regardless of short-term token price moves.
GitHub activity is the basis of the index
Santiment says the ranking tracks visible development work across project repositories, focusing on code commits, updates, and other repository-level actions. The idea is to measure engineering intensity rather than market sentiment. That gives analysts a way to separate projects with steady technical output from those drawing attention mainly through promotion.
The firm also makes clear that the metric has limits. A high score does not automatically mean better code or greater technical complexity. Smaller but frequent updates can raise a project’s standing, while a major release delivered less often may not score as highly under this framework.
Curve leads, followed by infrastructure-focused names
Curve Finance, which operates across Ethereum and Arbitrum, sits in first and second place in the ranking. The report notes that Curve had already drawn attention for its DeFi footprint in liquidity and lending, and that its founder faced a credit crisis during market events in 2023. Even so, the team has kept up an intense development pace two years after that period.
Succinct ranks third. The project is building zero-knowledge proof infrastructure on Ethereum and, while it is not yet widely recognized across the broader crypto market, its development score points to heavy work at the infrastructure layer. Avail is fourth, with a focus on data availability, and the report says it has outperformed many larger projects in code activity despite a relatively low market capitalization. API3 is also highlighted for maintaining strong technical progress while remaining modest in size.
Market value and engineering effort do not always match
DoubleZero, an infrastructure project on Solana, comes in sixth. Santiment draws attention to the contrast between its sizeable market cap and its lower development activity relative to some peers. That gap suggests valuation does not always reflect how hard engineering teams are working, or how much movement is taking place in the underlying technology.
Lower on the list are Radworks, Reserve Protocol, Pocket Network, and Gitcoin. According to the report, each of these projects improved its ranking over the past month, pointing to renewed or sustained development focus even as broader market conditions stayed weak.
The metric offers signals, not a full verdict
The broader takeaway from the report is that several top-ranked projects have kept building through a subdued market period. Santiment adds that Curve Finance posted the strongest weekly price increase among the leading projects, while price changes for the others were more muted. Even so, the report frames the ranking mainly as evidence that many teams are still prioritizing ongoing product work over short-term price swings.