Decentralized lending and borrowing protocol Aave has taken the number one slot in total value locked (TVL), snatching that position from rival MakerDAO.

Aave's TVL, or the total amount of crypto assets deposited into the protocol for lending and borrowing purposes, is now $1.45 billion, according to tracker DeFi Pulse. MakerDAO's TVL is a tad lower at $1.44 billion.

Aave is the second project to beat MakerDAO in TVL. On June 20, Compound overtook the DAI stablecoin issuer, with about $500 million in TVL at the time as compared to MakerDAO's $486 million.

The yield farming craze in recent weeks has shot up the TVL of almost all DeFi protocols, to currently stand at over $6.9 billion. In February, that amount was only $1 billion. As The Block Research previously reported, TVL is not an ideal metric to look at DeFi activity. The Block's Open Finance Index, which takes into consideration vertical-specific parameters such as decentralized exchange volumes, provides a better picture.

Aave's number one rank follows an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license received by the firm's U.K. business entity. The permit allows Aave to offer services such as issuing digital cash alternatives and providing payment services.

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