1inch Opens Aqua Shared-Liquidity Protocol Across 13 Chains
Decentralized exchange aggregator 1inch has opened Aqua, its shared liquidity protocol, to users across 13 Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible chains, including Ethereum, Base, BNB Chain, Arbitrum and Robinhood Chain.
Aqua lets liquidity providers use the same wallet balance across multiple positions instead of splitting assets among separate pools. Tokens stay in the provider's wallet until a matching swap executes, so a $100,000 balance can quote three positions worth a combined $300,000 -- that's quoted liquidity, not extra capital, and a swap fails if the wallet can't cover it.
"Tokens stay in your wallet, under your control, while one balance backs multiple positions across different strategies rather than being split between smart contract deposits," 1inch co-founder Sergej Kunz told CoinDesk.
The rollout follows research commissioned by 1inch that found 85% of $1.84 billion tracked across major concentrated-liquidity exchanges sat underutilized in the first half of 2026. Roughly $542 million sat fully outside active trading ranges in an average week, missing an estimated $150 million in annual fees.
The launch pairs with a liquidity incentive program distributed through Merkl: the 1inch Foundation is committing 10 million 1INCH tokens and the 1inch DAO is adding $500,000 in USDC over three months -- a combined program worth roughly $1.37 million at current prices.
1inch said Aqua underwent eight independent security audits. Liquidity providers still face price movements, impermanent loss and smart-contract risk.
bonuz has been watching 1inch's approach to capital efficiency closely. Getting more out of the liquidity that already exists, without asking users to lock up more of it, is exactly the kind of plumbing a genuinely multi-chain future needs.
