Gauntlet

Gauntlet is rejected under the shared class rule, not because all Gauntlet vaults are impaired. It curates vaults whose assets can move among lending markets and other strategies after deposit. The DefiLlama API read on 2026-08-15 reported about $1.42B across thirteen chains, so the former $55M below-materiality classification was false. The correct v1 judgment is delegated allocation: non-custodial contracts and curator risk limits constrain operations, but the client still accepts Gauntlet’s future market selection, caps and rebalancing. Public stress reporting includes an April 2024 Morpho market loss shared by one Gauntlet vault, which shows why the underlying exposure matters.

Review triggers: events that reopen the verdict
• A named vault enforces an immutable or client-specific allowlist and client-specific venue constraints limited to approved protocols
• Live holdings, debt, realized losses, authorities and executable withdrawal liquidity are continuously verifiable for that vault

Watched nightly: a warning on its venues or files, or a cited document that changes, reopens the memo. The first confirmation is due 2026-11-15.

The research file

Mechanism and class applicability

Gauntlet documents its authority as curator to select lending markets, set or adjust supply caps and liquidation loan-to-value parameters, and rebalance vault assets as conditions change. Users hold vault positions while Gauntlet keeps making those allocation decisions. Its Morpho, Kamino and Drift offerings differ, but each reviewed product allows strategy or market selection after deposit. That common feature puts them directly in the delegated-allocation class.

Control and operating evidence

Gauntlet states that curators cannot transfer user funds off-platform or block withdrawals allowed by the contracts. Vault contracts, caps and available markets also limit allocations. It publishes methods for risk categories and liquidity, including simulations, collateral review and an example target for immediate withdrawals. Those controls reduce custody and market risk, but they do not let this advisory program enforce its approved-venue list when Gauntlet changes live exposures.

Loss and exit evidence

Gauntlet’s stress record reports that an April 2024 ezETH event caused 10.96 WETH of market insolvency and spread 7.12 WETH, described as 11 basis points of yield, across its LRT Balanced vault. Other cited events reportedly left no insolvent debt after reallocations. These are outcomes reported by the issuer, not a complete independent incident record. Morpho-vault withdrawals depend on available liquidity. Drift products may use a redemption queue and leave final proceeds subject to changes in share value, fees and strategy PnL.

Why the delegated-allocation rule decides

Scale no longer decides this record. The client cannot approve only today’s underlying markets and know that those exposures will stay fixed. Gauntlet actively changes allocations and risk parameters within each vault’s allowed set. Review can reopen for a named vault if an immutable or client-enforced allowlist and caps contain only approved venues, and if live holdings, debt, realized losses, authorities and available liquidity for executable withdrawals can be checked at all times.

Class rule

The delegated allocation class is outside the approved structures, so every protocol in it is not approved until the rule changes. The rule is about the structure, not an adverse finding about this protocol, and it is not a client instruction. The events that would reopen it are listed with the memo.

Sources

The claims above trace to these. Where a number could not be independently verified, the thesis says so.

• Gauntlet VaultBook — curator powers and limits · primary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: market selection, supply caps, rebalancing authority, non-custodial limits, withdrawal dependency
• Gauntlet VaultBook — asset-liquidity methodology · primary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: idle market, immediate withdrawal target, utilization constraints, liquidity monitoring
• Gauntlet VaultBook — market-volatility record · primary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: April 2024 ezETH event, socialized vault loss, 2025 stress responses, issuer-reported outcomes
• Gauntlet VaultBook — Drift vault user flow · primary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: redemption queue, withdrawal finalization, share-value risk, fees
• Gauntlet VaultBook — vault integrations · primary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: Gauntlet-curated Morpho vaults, supply and withdraw interface, self-custody
• DefiLlama — Gauntlet survey record, read 2026-08-15 · secondary · accessed 2026-08-15
  Supports: current TVL, chain distribution, risk-curator category, survey perimeter

Inherited controls

The research above describes the protocol layer. Every position also inherits the asset it holds and the chain it settles on. The layer with the most administrative power sets the position’s effective control; that describes control, not quality or suitability.