Zest V2

Zest is an open-source lending protocol on Stacks where holders can earn on BTC or borrow against it. At $57M TVL in the 2026-08-14 survey, it is below our size floor. We do not open an individual review until it clears that floor. An advisory book moved into a venue this size based on the same research could overwhelm the exit, whatever the protocol’s quality. A reopened memo would also require Stacks to pass chain-level vetting, which it has not. Nothing deployed on an unapproved chain is available for client money, regardless of protocol quality.

Review triggers: events that reopen the verdict
• TVL sustained above the retired TVL threshold for 30 days
• The Stacks review resolves to approved

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 applicability

Zest V2 is an onchain lending market on Stacks. Suppliers deposit assets into asset-specific vaults and receive zTokens. Borrowers post collateral and draw debt under pair-specific risk groups, loan-to-value limits and liquidation terms. sBTC exposure also brings in the assumptions behind the Stacks chain and its Bitcoin asset. These facts place Zest in this class. They do not approve the protocol.

Protocol-specific operating evidence

Zest says its code is open source, and Clarity Alliance has made a V2 security review public. Those sources matter, but the size floor stops this review before we check deployed code, authorities, oracle design, audit fixes, incidents or each market’s terms. Past protocol documents that cite deposits above the size floor do not meet the current rule, which requires the protocol to stay above it for 30 days.

Exit consequence

A supplier’s zToken is a claim on an asset vault. A supplier can withdraw only from liquid assets that borrowers are not using. Borrowers must repay or face liquidation under their risk group. DefiLlama’s current API record shows about $58M TVL and a much smaller borrowed balance. A client allocation could still be large for the venue. A disruption to Stacks or sBTC would create another barrier to exit.

Why the class rule decides

The v1 below-materiality dossier requires current TVL to meet the size floor for at least 30 days. Zest V2 is below that floor despite its documented historical peak, so we have not opened the individual review of controls, incidents and liquidity. A review can reopen only after Zest clears the floor and Stacks passes a chain review. Neither crossing the threshold nor completing an audit would mean approval.

Research status

This is a capacity-unproven record for Zest V2, not a quality rejection or approval. Reported TVL says how big the venue is, not what the client owns, who can change the rules, or how a position exits at a proposed size. The individual review opens when the protocol clears the size floor.

Sources

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

• Zest Protocol Docs — protocol overview · primary · accessed 2026-08-14
  Supports: Stacks lending, supported assets, open-source code, historical deposits
• Zest Protocol Docs — V2 borrowing and risk groups · primary · accessed 2026-08-14
  Supports: collateral, risk groups, loan-to-value, liquidation, repayment
• Zest Protocol Docs — V2 asset vaults · primary · accessed 2026-09-30
  Supports: asset-specific vault, zTokens, lending liquidity, interest accrual
• Clarity Alliance — Zest Protocol V2 security review · secondary · accessed 2026-08-14
  Supports: V2 security review, audit scope
• DefiLlama — Zest V2 survey record · secondary · accessed 2026-08-14
  Supports: current TVL, borrowed value, chain, lending category

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.