> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.inceptionlrt.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.inceptionlrt.com/mission/why-now.md).

# Why now?

There’s a clear inflection point in the evolution of on-chain capital markets. Three structural forces are converging, creating the need for infrastructure like Inception:

### **1. Curator-led Environments are Growing** 

A few years ago, less than 1% of DeFi’s TVL flowed through curator-led vaults. Today, over **21%** of total TVL is allocated to protocols where third parties manage vault design and rewards.

Protocols like *Morpho, Symbiotic, Spectra*, and *EigenLayer* are not competing for TVL as vertically integrated products, they’re acting as **permissionless vault frameworks**. As more capital flows into these ecosystems, users and institutions need a way to access and compose exposure across them without getting trapped in siloed experiences.

<figure><img src="https://2674700783-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FH5cQR703CA1JD1dlB1kD%2Fuploads%2F8JnBkmSx0mscNa6lMTjt%2Fd3.png?alt=media&amp;token=f2b0c66b-9442-4ade-a58b-94a98dc5f9c7" alt="" width="563"><figcaption><p>TVL Growth of Curated DeFi</p></figcaption></figure>

### **2. Institutional Capital is Being Onboarded Onchain**

In 2020, institutional involvement in DeFi meant buying into blue-chip vaults or LP positions.\
By 2024, institutions are **issuing on-chain products themselves**:

* Tokenized T-bills
* Structured credit
* Custom basis trade vaults
* Permissioned staking pools

This means institutions are playing the role of curators, and they need infrastructure that supports **design, issuance, and liquidity abstraction** at scale.

<figure><img src="https://2674700783-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FH5cQR703CA1JD1dlB1kD%2Fuploads%2FUl6ioVwgCxCVqYbSTFvy%2Fd3-1.png?alt=media&amp;token=2d8186f1-8c78-4490-a9bb-b5464e2b7360" alt="" width="563"><figcaption><p>Total amount of RWAs Onchain</p></figcaption></figure>

### **3. RWAs and DeFi-native rewards are merging**

Today’s highest-performing vaults combine real-world and on-chain components.

A single product might include:

* A tokenized short-term bond (RWA)
* A restaking wrapper on a shared security infrastructure
* A looping mechanism through a lending protocol
* A liquidity provisioning strategy via a DEX

This layered design is powerful, but without modular infrastructure, it’s inaccessible to most users and hard to manage even for power users.

### In Summary

Curated DeFi is where the market is heading, but **access and composability** haven’t kept up with its growth.

**Inception exists to solve this.** By unifying access to the best curated vaults and standardizing reward composition through inTokens, the protocol gives users a way to interact with DeFi’s next phase without having to rebuild the plumbing themselves.