Traditional finance heavyweight Apollo Global Management has signed a cooperation agreement with decentralized lending protocol Morpho, marking a significant step into onchain credit markets.
Under the agreement, Apollo or its affiliates may acquire up to 90 million MORPHO governance tokens over a four-year period. The allocation represents 9% of the token’s total 1 billion supply and will be subject to ownership caps and transfer restrictions. Purchases may occur through open-market transactions, over-the-counter deals and other contractual arrangements.
The partnership also includes collaboration on strengthening Morpho’s blockchain-based lending infrastructure, though specific implementation details have not been disclosed.
MORPHO Token Jumps Following Announcement
Following news of the deal, MORPHO rose approximately 17.8% over the weekend, climbing from around $1.12 to near $1.32. Despite the short-term rally, the token remains down roughly 38% over the past year amid broader crypto market weakness.
Morpho currently ranks among the largest DeFi lending platforms, with about $5.8 billion in total value locked. The protocol offers decentralized lending markets and curated vault strategies designed to generate yield for users.
Institutional Adoption of Decentralized Finance Accelerates
Apollo manages nearly $940 billion in assets, and the Morpho agreement reflects a broader trend of institutional firms exploring blockchain-based credit markets. The asset manager has previously collaborated with Coinbase on stablecoin credit initiatives and invested in tokenization infrastructure projects.
The latest move signals growing convergence between traditional asset management and decentralized finance lending ecosystems.
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