> 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/purpose-and-philosophy.md).

# Purpose and Philosophy

The Staking Rewards DeFi Rating is designed as an **open standard** to make DeFi products more transparent and safer to navigate and part of the [**DeFi Risk Alliance**](/defi-ratings/defi-risk-alliance.md).

Our core question is:

> **What is the risk of losing my position?**

We’re **only** rating how likely you are to lose money, **not** how good the product is or how high the yield is.\
A vault or protocol may have excellent audits and a top-tier team, yet the underlying strategy can still expose deposits to elevated loss risk.

Even if:

* the **code is audited**
* the **team is excellent**
* the **infrastructure is solid**

…the **strategy or operations themselves** (how it invests/borrows/leverages/LPs) can still be risky.

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

Our goal is to **show clearly where the risk lies**, so that users, integrators, and institutions can make informed decisions and the ecosystem gains the accountability it currently lacks.