With the price of BTC continuing to rise this year, the total market value of the crypto market soared to a peak of $3.9 trillion, with BTC alone approaching $2 trillion, ranking behind Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google’s parent company Alphabet in the market capitalization of US stock companies. Meanwhile, as an anchor token for cryptocurrencies and issuance, the total supply of stablecoins has reached $187.5 billion, setting a historical high. The number of transactions and trading volume has increased by 30%-40%.
As a core tool of the cryptocurrency ecosystem, stablecoins not only enable rapid exchanges between assets but are also seen as an important indicator of new capital inflows. Its basic definition is a cryptocurrency pegged to fiat currency or other assets to achieve value stability.
In the stablecoin race, USDT maintains its dominant position in the stablecoin field with its massive total market value, while USDC has gained market recognition for its compliance. The emerging algorithmic stablecoin USDe has rapidly risen through celebrity endorsements and continuous brand collaborations, successfully carving out a niche in the market.
Stablecoins have already become the 'profit printing machines' of the blockchain field. In the first quarter of this year, Tether, the issuer of USDT, achieved over $4.52 billion in profits, setting a historical record. In comparison, Tether's net profit for the entire year of 2023 was $6.2 billion, and the rapid profit growth in this quarter is remarkable, fully showcasing the astonishing profitability behind the stablecoin market.
In April of this year, the stablecoin newcomer Usual Labs secured $7 million in funding and subsequently launched the stablecoin USD0, attempting to carve out a new space in this blue ocean.
1. What is Usual?
Tether and Circle have generated over $10 billion in revenue over the past year, with valuations exceeding $200 billion. However, these earnings have not been shared with the users who contributed to their success, which goes against the current crypto ecosystem's principles of contribution and profit-sharing.
What Usual aims to do is return the ownership of token issuance and the profits generated from it back to the users. Usual's goal is to give back the ownership of token issuance and the profits generated thereby to users, achieving true decentralized wealth distribution.
In the Usual Protocol, users can obtain USD0 by depositing assets, with this token serving as a deposit certificate (LDT) within the protocol. Users holding USD0 have two options: either lock it to provide liquidity or convert USD0 into liquidity bond tokens (LBT), namely USD0++, to deeply participate in the DeFi ecosystem and earn returns.
These earnings include the airdrop rewards of the governance token $USUAL and the potential deposit earnings generated within the protocol. Through this design, Usual not only grants users higher participation and earning rights but also allows them to become an important part of the development of the protocol's ecosystem.
2. How does Usual operate?
When users deposit assets, the Usual protocol generates a Liquid Deposit Token (LDT) equivalent to the deposit amount as a synthetic asset. LDT represents the initial value of the user's deposit in the protocol and is backed 1:1 by the deposited original asset. LDT allows users to redeem the underlying assets at any time under normal circumstances, providing its holders with permanent withdrawal rights. Additionally, LDT can be freely traded without permission, offering users asset liquidity and greater operational flexibility.
With LDT, users can unlock profit leverage in the DeFi world. For example, users can use LDT to provide liquidity or choose to lock it for a certain period to generate liquidity bond tokens (LBT). LBT provides users with additional liquidity, transferability, and composability, facilitating seamless integration and efficient trading within DeFi. More importantly, users actively participating in these interactions will also receive rewards in Usual's governance tokens.
Usual's core philosophy is to create a fair-based financial ecosystem by distributing value and power more equitably among users. Usual aims to make users the true owners of the protocol's infrastructure, capital, and governance.
To achieve this goal, Usual redistributes 100% of the value and control back to the community through governance tokens. Governance tokens not only grant users the leading role in the development of the protocol but also ensure the adjustment of financial incentives for participants within the ecosystem. By distributing tokens to users and third parties who create value, Usual achieves a fair flow of resources and further solidifies the core position of community governance. This new financial model reshapes the relationship between users and the protocol, allowing every user to become a true participant and beneficiary of the ecosystem.
3. Advantages of the USUAL Ecosystem
Usual successfully brings tokenized real-world assets (RWA) from leading institutions such as BlackRock, Ondo, and Mountain Protocol onto the blockchain using multi-chain infrastructure. Through this integration, Usual has created a permissionless, on-chain verifiable, and composable stablecoin USD0, seamlessly connecting traditional financial assets with blockchain technology. This model not only provides users with more efficient and secure asset stability guarantees but also injects broader asset support into the DeFi ecosystem.
The minting mechanism of USD0 is designed to be highly flexible, supporting two methods: users can directly deposit eligible RWA assets to obtain USD0; or they can deposit USDC/USDT to receive an equivalent USD0, with third parties providing necessary RWA collateral as support. This dual model lowers the participation threshold for users while significantly increasing the overall liquidity of the stablecoin, providing convenient access for retail users and institutional investors.
Moreover, Usual not only launched the foundational stablecoin USD0 but also designed an appreciation token USD0++, providing users with flexible earning options. Users can lock assets to earn governance token USUAL rewards daily or choose fixed-period lock-ups for stable, risk-free earnings. This comprehensive earning mechanism meets users' diverse needs for low-risk and growing returns, transforming USD0 from merely a value storage tool into a dynamic appreciating financial asset.
4. USUAL Team and Financing Information
Usual is a powerful project founded by former French congressman Pierre Person, whose team has deep expertise in policy promotion and blockchain technology, ensuring the project's compliance and global expansion. In 2024, Usual completed two rounds of financing totaling $8.5 million and achieved a total locked value (TVL) of $369 million through outstanding product design and market strategy. This strong market performance fully demonstrates Usual's growth potential and industry competitiveness, injecting more confidence and momentum into its future development.
5. USUAL Token Economics
The fiat stablecoin issuer USUAL, with its governance token USUAL, will hold actual revenues from the platform protocol, future income, and infrastructure ownership. According to official information, the total supply of the fiat stablecoin issuer Usual token USUAL is 4,000,000,000, with the initial circulating supply accounting for 12.37% of the total supply, amounting to 494,600,000. Of this, 73% is allocated to the public and liquidity providers, ensuring broad distribution of the tokens. 13.5% is allocated to market makers (MM), team members, and early investors. 13.5% is used for DAO, buybacks, voting, and other community governance activities to support the long-term development of the ecosystem.
The distribution mechanism of the SUAL token is highly inclined towards community users, fully reflecting the concept of decentralization and fair distribution. Of these, 90% of the tokens will be allocated to the community, including USD0++ holders, liquidity providers (LPs), stakers, and users participating in other protocol products. Meanwhile, as Usual achieves a multi-asset structure, the distribution range of future tokens will be further expanded to include LBT and LP rewards for other assets, ensuring that various users can benefit from the growth of the protocol.
The USUAL token has multiple utilities within the protocol ecosystem. First, holders can enjoy all the earnings from the protocol's income, directly sharing in the economic results of ecological development. Secondly, token holders can earn a 10% token reward from the supply through staking and participate in protocol governance, such as key decisions regarding treasury reinvestment. Additionally, USUAL introduces a token burning mechanism that allows users to burn USUAL tokens to prematurely un-stake USD0++, further enhancing the circulation value and operational flexibility of the tokens.
In terms of dynamic supply adjustment, the issuance mechanism of the USUAL token dynamically adjusts based on the protocol's TVL (total locked value). When TVL increases, the token issuance volume decreases accordingly; and vice versa. This design ensures that the issuance of tokens is closely synchronized with the development of the protocol, providing assurance for the long-term sustainability of the ecosystem.
6. Analysis of USUAL's Future Value
The economic model design of the UAL token is robust and attractive, injecting innovative vitality into its RWA stablecoin domain. USUAL is not only the core tool for protocol governance but also endows the token with actual value through income support, making it scarce and appealing. Stakers can earn 10% of the total minting volume as rewards, and this incentive mechanism effectively encourages users to actively participate in staking, providing strong support for the sustainable development of the protocol ecosystem.
In terms of inflation control, USUAL has demonstrated outstanding performance. Its minting volume is strictly constrained by the available supply of USD0++ and real-world interest rates, avoiding the dilution of token value due to uncontrolled inflation. This meticulous design ensures the long-term stability of the token, making it a high-value and promising investment target in the market.
