> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.stakingrewards.com/defi-ratings/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.stakingrewards.com/defi-ratings/rating-methodology/framework-and-pillars.md).

# Framework and Pillars

Our rating answers one core question: **“What is the risk of losing my position?”** using three weighted pillars - Security, Strategy, and Operations - since most real-world failures come from a mix of these dimensions, not a single weakness.

The framework is built as a question tree: each pillar answers the core question, each subcategory refines its pillar, and **84 individual questions** collectively feed into those subcategories to produce the final rating.

<figure><img src="/files/56EAGkszqjMUw8qjXg2T" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

The underlying question set is published as an **open standard**, available for [anyone to use in their own research](/defi-ratings/rating-methodology/framework-and-pillars/questions.md#undefined), due diligence, or internal risk assessments.

For access to full risk reports and fact sheets produced by the Staking Rewards team using this framework, please refer to the report subscription packages.

> © 2025 Staking Rewards (Finrate AG).\
> The Staking Rewards DeFi Risk Question Framework is licensed under\
> Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).\
> \
> Commercial use (including selling ratings or risk opinions based on this framework)\
> requires a separate license from Staking Rewards.