Index Coop is one of the most established DeFi index providers with strong security practices (8+ audits, open source, bug bounty). The core index products like DPI offer genuine diversification value. However, the extremely low INDEX token FDV relative to governed AUM is a structural concern, and leverage products carry inherent volatility decay risk. Lower risk for index products, higher risk for leverage products.
Top Risks
1
Index tokens (DPI, MVI, etc.) hold baskets of underlying DeFi tokens, creating compounded smart contract risk across all constituent protocols
2
Leverage products (ETH2x, BTC2x) use automated rebalancing that can amplify losses during rapid market moves and may suffer from volatility decay over time
3
INDEX governance token has extremely low FDV ($2.8M) relative to protocol AUM, creating a potential governance attack vector where acquiring majority voting power is cheap
Risk Breakdown
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Index Coop safe to use?
Index Coop receives a B- risk grade (30/100) from Hindenrank, where lower scores indicate lower risk. Index Coop is one of the most established DeFi index providers with strong security practices (8+ audits, open source, bug bounty). The core index products like DPI offer genuine diversification value. However, the extremely low INDEX token FDV relative to governed AUM is a structural concern, and leverage products carry inherent volatility decay risk. Lower risk for index products, higher risk for leverage products. Index Coop is a decentralized organization that creates crypto index funds, making it easy to get diversified exposure to DeFi and other crypto themes with a single token. Their flagship product, the DeFi Pulse Index (DPI), tracks top DeFi tokens in one basket, similar to how an S&P 500 ETF tracks stocks. They also offer leverage products like ETH2x that give you 2x exposure to Ethereum price movements through automated rebalancing. All products are built on Set Protocol smart contracts and charge a streaming fee similar to traditional ETF expense ratios. Eight-plus audits completed from firms like OpenZeppelin.
What are the main risks of using Index Coop?
The key risks identified for Index Coop are: (1) Holding an index token means you are exposed to smart contract risk of every constituent protocol in the basket (2) Leverage products like ETH2x suffer from volatility decay, meaning they may underperform simple 2x leverage in choppy markets (3) The INDEX governance token has very low value relative to the assets it governs, creating a potential governance attack risk (4) Index rebalancing during market crashes can lock in losses by selling at the worst possible time
What is Index Coop's risk score breakdown?
Index Coop scores 30/100 across eight risk dimensions: Mechanism Novelty: 3/15, Interaction Severity: 5/20, Oracle Surface: 3/10, Documentation Gaps: 1/10, Track Record: 4/15, Scale Exposure: 3/10, Regulatory Risk: 2/10, Vitality Risk: 9/10. The highest risk area is Vitality Risk at 9/10.
How does Index Coop compare to other DeFi protocols?
Among 68 rated DeFi protocols on Hindenrank, Index Coop ranks #18 by safety (lowest risk score = safest). Its 30/100 risk score and B- grade place it among the safer DeFi protocols.
Has Index Coop ever been hacked or exploited?
Index Coop scores 4/15 on the Track Record risk dimension, indicating some history of security incidents or exploits. Higher scores reflect more severe or frequent incidents. Review the full risk report for details.