Is Infrared Safe?
Risk Grade: B- (32/100)
Infrared is rated as moderate risk — some novel mechanisms, generally well-understood.
Moderate risk — dominant position on a brand-new chain whose core economic mechanism has zero track record
The largest protocol on Berachain, wrapping the chain's unique proof-of-liquidity rewards into liquid tokens (iBGT, iBERA) you can use across DeFi. It manages $1.6B with $16.5M in funding. Its C+ grade reflects deep dependency on Berachain's untested consensus mechanism and validator concentration.
TVL
$50M
Mechanisms
8
Interactions
5
Value Grade
C
Key Risks for Infrared Users
Everything depends on Berachain's novel proof-of-liquidity system working correctly. If that mechanism breaks, Infrared's tokens become worthless wrappers around nothing
Infrared runs its own validator set controlling a large share of Berachain's security. A slashing event or validator failure hits all $1.6B in delegated assets
iBGT can lose its peg on the thin Berachain trading markets. A 5% depeg triggers liquidations across every lending protocol using iBGT as collateral, deepening the spiral
Top Risk Factors
- •Deep dependency on Berachain's novel and untested Proof of Liquidity consensus — if PoL fails, Infrared's entire value proposition collapses
- •Validator concentration risk: Infrared operates its own validator set, creating single-point-of-failure for $1.6B in delegated assets
- •iBGT depeg risk amplified by thin Berachain DeFi liquidity — a 5% depeg could cascade through leveraged positions across the ecosystem
How Infrared Compares to Peers
Infrared ranks #46 of 84 Liquid Staking protocols (below-median — riskier than average). At a risk score of 32/100, it's in line with the sector average (32/100).
Adjacent peers: StackingDAO (B-, 31/100) is ranked just safer, and Origin Ether (B-, 32/100) is ranked just riskier.
See the full Liquid Staking sector leaderboard or the Infrared vs Origin Ether comparison.
Common Questions about Infrared
Plain-English answers based on Infrared's scores across Hindenrank's 8 risk dimensions. The highest-scoring (riskiest) dimension is Vitality Risk (7/10).
Has Infrared ever been hacked or exploited?
Infrared has a fairly clean operational history. The track record dimension scored 3/15, indicating minor or no significant incidents on record. A clean track record is a positive signal but it does not guarantee future safety, especially as protocol complexity grows.
How much money is at stake in Infrared?
Infrared currently holds roughly $50M in user deposits. Smaller TVL means individual depositors carry a larger share of any loss event, and it can be harder to exit a position quickly during stress.
What's the worst-case scenario for Infrared?
Hindenrank has identified specific collapse scenarios for Infrared. The most prominent: "iBGT Depeg and Validator Concentration Cascade". The trigger condition is Berachain PoL rewards decline sharply or a major validator operated by Infrared is slashed, causing iBGT to trade at a persistent discount to BGT. Reading through the full scenario list on the protocol page is the single best way to understand the actual failure modes — generic "smart contract risk" is rarely the thing that takes a protocol down.
Is Infrared regulated or insured?
Infrared has low regulatory exposure on Hindenrank's framework (3/10). The protocol is structured in a way that minimizes counterparty and jurisdiction concentration, though regulatory risk in crypto can change rapidly. No DeFi protocol carries FDIC-style insurance — even with low regulatory risk, depositors are not protected in the way bank customers are.
What are the biggest red flags for Infrared?
Hindenrank's retail-focused risk audit flagged: Everything depends on Berachain's novel proof-of-liquidity system working correctly. If that mechanism breaks, Infrared's tokens become worthless wrappers around nothing Infrared runs its own validator set controlling a large share of Berachain's security. A slashing event or validator failure hits all $1.6B in delegated assets iBGT can lose its peg on the thin Berachain trading markets. A 5% depeg triggers liquidations across every lending protocol using iBGT as collateral, deepening the spiral
Should beginners deposit into Infrared?
Infrared is rated B-, which is acceptable for users who understand the protocol's mechanism. Beginners should read the full risk breakdown and only deposit after they can articulate the top three failure modes. If you cannot explain how the protocol works, do not deposit.
How does Infrared compare to safer Liquid Staking alternatives?
Infrared is one protocol in Hindenrank's Liquid Staking coverage. The safest Liquid Staking protocols on the leaderboard tend to share three traits: a long incident-free track record, conservative mechanism design, and high-quality public documentation. Compare Infrared against the full Liquid Staking ranking before committing capital.
For the full 8-dimension score breakdown, the radar chart, and dependency graph, see the Infrared risk report.
Read the Full Infrared Risk Report
This protocol has 2 collapse scenarios. 3 high-severity interaction risks identified. See the full mechanism classification, interaction matrix, and deep-dive recommendations.
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