Balancer
Programmable AMM with weighted, stable, boosted and liquidity bootstrapping pools on Ethereum and other EVM chains.
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Balancer key facts
| Category | Decentralized exchange |
|---|---|
| Chains | Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Polygon and others |
| Platforms | Web, API |
| Custody | Non-custodial |
| Fees | Protocol share: 25% of swap fees, 10% of yield fees (v3); flash loans free |
| Token | BAL (emissions halted Q2 2026) |
| Open source | Yes, balancer-v3-monorepo |
| US availability | Available: terms restrict only sanctioned jurisdictions |
BAL token
- Price
- $0.1143 -1.4% 24h
- Market cap
- $8M
- Fully diluted value
- $8.3M
- 30-day change
- -11.5%
Market data: CoinGecko, updated Nov 10, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
What is Balancer?
Balancer is a decentralized exchange built around a shared Vault that holds pool tokens. Its v3 protocol takes 25% of pool swap fees and 10% of yield fees, and flash loans are free. In Q2 2026 governance halted BAL emissions and discontinued veBAL. A September 2026 proposal, BIP-928, would wind the protocol down.
How Balancer works
Balancer keeps the tokens of every pool in one contract, the Vault, while each pool contract holds only its pricing math for swaps and liquidity changes.
In v3, users do not call the Vault directly; Routers are the entry point for swaps and liquidity operations. The Vault supports standard ERC20 tokens and does not work with rebasing tokens. Pool types include weighted, stable and boosted pools, and pools can use hooks, for example to set dynamic swap fees.
A swap fee is charged on the input amount of each swap and on the non-proportional part of unbalanced deposits or withdrawals. In v3 the Vault has no fee cap; limits sit at pool level, 0.001% to 10% for weighted pools and 0.0001% to 10% for stable pools. Authorized accounts can set a static fee, or a pool can name its own swap manager instead of governance.
How to start with Balancer
- Balancer has no account signup: you connect a wallet at balancer.fi, pick a pool and swap or deposit through the Router.
- Check the governance forum before depositing.
- BIP-928, posted on September 14, 2026, proposes an orderly winddown in which pools move to withdrawals only on October 30, 2026, and v3 pools that partners ask to keep by October 16 run until November 30, 2026, when the v3 Vault is paused.
- Bug bounty coverage ends on October 30 for every pool.
- The Snapshot vote opened on September 25, 2026 and closes on September 29, 2026; as of September 26, 2026 it was still pending.
Balancer fees and limits
- In v3 the protocol takes 25% of pool swap fees and 10% of yield fees on yield-bearing tokens.
- After BIP-919 in Q2 2026, BAL emissions stopped, veBAL was discontinued and 100% of protocol fees route to the DAO treasury.
Flash loans are free in v3. On top of the pool fee you pay network gas on the chain you use.
Risks to know before using Balancer
- On November 3, 2025, attackers exploited Balancer v2 pools across several networks.
- The DAO's BIP-892 reports that whitehats and rescue operations recovered about $8 million, with about $19.7 million more in osETH and osGNO handled by StakeWise.
- On March 23, 2026 co-founder Fernando Martinelli announced that Balancer Labs would shut down, citing legal exposure from the exploit.
- Balancer v2 core contracts are immutable, so fixes require new pools.
- The Immunefi bug bounty covers smart contracts only, not the web interface.
Balancer usage
From DefiLlama (TVL) (fees users paid), updated Nov 10, 2026.
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Where Balancer ranks on DappAtlas
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Balancer pros and cons
- Flash loans carry no fee in v3
- Liquidity bootstrapping pools for token launches
- Public v3 monorepo on GitHub with audit reports
- Protocol takes 25% of swap fees in v3 (50% in v2)
- BAL emissions halted and veBAL discontinued in Q2 2026
- Pool swap fees vary by pool and can be changed by authorized accounts
- BIP-928 proposes moving pools to withdrawals only on October 30, 2026
Balancer FAQ
What is Balancer?
Balancer is a decentralized exchange built around a shared Vault that holds pool tokens. Its v3 protocol takes 25% of pool swap fees and 10% of yield fees, and flash loans are free. In Q2 2026 governance halted BAL emissions and discontinued veBAL. A September 2026 proposal, BIP-928, would wind the protocol down.
How much value is locked in Balancer?
$32.8M according to DefiLlama on Nov 10, 2026. It is deployed on 13 chains: Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Base, xDai, Avalanche and others.
How much does Balancer cost?
Protocol share: 25% of swap fees, 10% of yield fees (v3); flash loans free, according to Balancer’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
How much do users pay Balancer in fees?
$81,347.2 over the last 30 days, according to DefiLlama on Nov 10, 2026.
Does Balancer have a token?
Yes, BAL. Its market cap was $8M on CoinGecko on Nov 10, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
Is Balancer available in the US?
Available: terms restrict only sanctioned jurisdictions, according to Balancer’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
Does Balancer hold my funds?
No. Balancer is non-custodial: you keep your funds in your own wallet and sign each transaction.
Sources
- Balancer: official site
- Balancer: Protocol Fee Operations
- Balancer: BAL Token
- Balancer: GitHub
- Balancer: Terms of Use
- Balancer: The Vault
- Balancer: Swap fee
- Balancer: Security
- Balancer forum: BIP-928 orderly winddown
- Balancer forum: BIP-892 rescued funds
- Balancer forum: Shutting down Balancer Labs
- Snapshot: BIP-928 vote
- CoinGecko
- DefiLlama
How this page works
Sources: Balancer: official site, Balancer: Protocol Fee Operations, Balancer: BAL Token. Data as of Sep 26, 2026.
Not affiliated with any project listed. Educational content, not financial advice.