Hacken has launched a new framework to bring clarity and security to the often-volatile world of crypto yield products. The new metric, known as the Yield Risk Score (YRS), is designed to provide investors with a verifiable way to gauge the sustainability and safety of yield-generating protocols.

The initiative was announced following the recent Hacken Trust Summit in New York, an event that brought together leaders from major financial institutions like Nasdaq, Moody’s, S&P Global, Citi, and JPMorgan Chase. Hacken is positioning the YRS as the first standardized tool for assessing three critical dimensions of any yield protocol: its technical security, financial sustainability, and systemic dependencies.

Addressing a $49 Billion Blind Spot

This push for a new standard comes in response to what the firm identifies as a massive point of failure in the crypto ecosystem. According to Hacken’s research, faulty or unsustainable yield providers are the single largest source of investor losses, accounting for 55% of all capital lost in the industry. The data reveals that 330 different yield protocols have lost a combined $49 billion over the last five years, a risk highlighted by the recent $93 million collapse of Stream Finance.

The Hacken team explained that its Yield Audit aims to create a new layer of trust that helps retail investors make informed decisions while meeting the due diligence standards required by institutional players. To achieve this, the YRS analyzes projects on three fronts.

First, it evaluates security and infrastructure, including custody solutions and smart contract integrity, to generate a Technical Risk Score. Next, it stress-tests a protocol’s economic model and yield sources to determine a Financial Sustainability Score. Finally, the framework assesses external vulnerabilities from oracles, cross-chain bridges, and custodians to produce a Dependency Risk Score.

These three metrics are then combined into a single, comprehensive YRS, presented on a familiar D-to-AAA rating scale. Hacken will also offer continuous monitoring through its Extractor platform, allowing projects to maintain transparency with investors. This effort builds on the company’s track record of establishing industry standards, such as pioneering Proof of Reserves audits for exchanges after the FTX collapse—a practice now adopted by over 50 platforms.