Mantle, the Distribution Layer for Onchain Finance, Positioned Among Leading Layer 2s in New Messari Report
DUBAI, UAE, Dec. 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Messari has published an in-depth report examining Mantle's network design, ecosystem structure, and recent milestones, highlighting the protocol's evolution toward a coordinated distribution layer for onchain finance. The analysis focuses on Mantle's deepening exchange integration, expanding real-world asset infrastructure, and the emergence of a modular financial stack spanning capital, applications, and user access.
Deepening Distribution Through Bybit Integration
Messari highlights Mantle's evolving relationship with Bybit, which has progressed from a standard token listing to a deep platform-level integration where MNT functions as a core asset across trading, fee payments, VIP programs, and institutional products. Following a joint roadmap announced in August 2025, Bybit expanded MNT-quoted trading pairs, enabled discounted MNT-denominated fees, and introduced MNT-based benefits for VIP and institutional users. During this period, MNT's circulating market capitalization reached approximately $8.7 billion on October 8, 2025, reflecting expanded access, improved liquidity, and broader participation across Bybit's distribution channels.
Capital Formation Anchored for DeFi Hubs
The report notes that Mantle's capital base is anchored by mETH Protocol, which remains one of the network's largest sources of onchain liquidity. As of late 2025, mETH holds $791.7 million in ETH and cmETH holds $277 million, representing approximately $1.07 billion in underlying assets. On the application layer, Mantle's DeFi TVL reached $242.3 million as of September 30, 2025, reflecting continued growth in onchain activity across the network.
Expanding Institutional Stack Across RWAs, DeFi, and Infrastructure
Messari also underscores Mantle's progress in building institutional-grade onchain infrastructure through its Tokenization-as-a-Service (TaaS) platform, which provides end-to-end support for compliant RWA issuance. Institutional activity expanded through issuances such as Ondo Finance's USDY, which reached approximately $29 million tokenized on Mantle, alongside broader ecosystem initiatives including global RWA hackathons and scholarship programs.
"Institutions don't adopt isolated execution layers, but they adopt ecosystems that coordinate capital, liquidity, and distribution," said Emily Bao, Key Advisor at Mantle. "Mantle's focus has been on closing those gaps and making onchain finance usable at institutional scale, rather than optimizing for throughput alone."
"Mantle's development reflects a broader shift among Layer 2s toward coordinating capital, applications, and distribution rather than optimizing execution in isolation," said Evan Zakhary, Protocol Research Analyst at Messari. "Its growing capital stack and exchange-led distribution position it as a network focused on institutional onchain activity."
Messari's analysis positions Mantle as a Layer 2 evolving beyond execution to coordinate capital, infrastructure, and distribution. As the network deepens exchange integration and institutional adoption, Mantle is increasingly defined by its role as a distribution layer for institutional onchain finance.
About Mantle
Mantle positions itself as the premier distribution layer and gateway for institutions and TradFi to connect with onchain liquidity and access real-world assets, powering how real-world finance flows.
With over $4B+ in community-owned assets, Mantle combines credibility, liquidity, and scalability with institutional-grade infrastructure to support large-scale adoption. The ecosystem is anchored by $MNT within Bybit, and built out through core ecosystem projects like mETH, fBTC, MI4 and more. This is complemented by Mantle Network's partnerships with leading issuers and protocols such as Ethena USDe, Ondo USDY, OP-Succinct and EigenLayer.
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About Bybit
Bybit is the world's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, serving a global community of over 80 million users. Founded in 2018, Bybit is redefining openness in the decentralized world by creating a simpler, open and equal ecosystem for everyone. With a strong focus on Web3, Bybit partners strategically with leading blockchain protocols to provide robust infrastructure and drive on-chain innovation. Renowned for its secure custody, diverse marketplaces, intuitive user experience, and advanced blockchain tools, Bybit bridges the gap between TradFi and DeFi, empowering builders, creators, and enthusiasts to unlock the full potential of Web3. Discover the future of decentralized finance at Bybit.com.
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