Core Rewards Builders: Rev+ Protocol Turns DeFi Usage into Developer Revenue
Core launches Rev+, a protocol that shares gas fees with DeFi developers and stablecoin issuers to boost on-chain incentives.
In a move aimed at fundamentally reshaping how decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems reward innovation, Core Foundation has launched Rev+, a revenue-sharing protocol designed to automatically compensate developers who contribute to network activity.
Rev+ enables builders within the Core (CORE) ecosystem—an EVM-compatible Bitcoin staking platform—to earn a share of gas fees generated by their applications. Developers behind DeFi protocols, stablecoins, NFT projects, and DAOs will now receive a direct cut of the fees generated through transactions they facilitate.
“Rev+ is designed to reward the very activity that powers our ecosystem,” said Hong Sun, Institutional Lead at Core Foundation. “More volume means more rewards—for issuers and builders alike. It’s the first time on-chain assets can monetize usage the same way web companies do.”
Traditionally, most of the fees in the DeFi space have been absorbed by infrastructure providers or lost in the system, leaving developers reliant on token issuance for monetization. Rev+ attempts to rebalance this model by compensating protocols directly based on their usage—eliminating the need for unsustainable token economics.
Stablecoins, in particular, stand to benefit. According to Sun, stablecoins now account for over $35 trillion in annual volume across blockchains and are responsible for 30.8% of all DeFi-generated fees—a sharp rise from just 4.7% earlier this year. Yet issuers historically earn nothing from the transaction activity they help generate.
“Stablecoins now account for over one-third of DeFi revenue,” said Sun. “Yet issuers do not earn revenue from transaction activity. Rev+ will change that by aligning incentives so that the projects powering Web3 actually get paid when their tokens move.”
By integrating Rev+ directly at the protocol level, Core hopes to attract more developers, particularly stablecoin issuers, into its ecosystem. This influx could stimulate on-chain activity, increase total value locked (TVL), and drive ecosystem growth.
As DeFi continues to evolve, Rev+ may mark a turning point in how blockchain platforms value and incentivize the builders at their core.
