OUSD is Origin’s native yield-generating stablecoin, fully collateralized by reserves of USDT, USDC, and DAI. First launched in September 2020, the OUSD ecosystem has been developed expressly to innovate on the developments made in DeFi over the past years and drive value directly to holders.
One of the major impacts of DeFi summer has been the proliferation of stablecoins in crypto. The burgeoning sector now boasts a combined valuation of >$150B, a significant portion of crypto’s total market cap.
This explosion can be attributed to three factors:
Stablecoins constitute any token created to represent another asset, with the value of the underlying asset pegged 1:1.
Stablecoins have branched into two high-level mechanisms: Collateralized stablecoins are fully backed by treasury reserves (as is the case with USDT, USDC, DAI, and OUSD). Conversely, algorithmic stablecoins like Luna’s infamous UST strive to maintain a peg by altering issuance based on supply and demand.
While algorithmic stablecoins are more decentralized by nature, the past year has laid bare the many problems with present algo stable architectures – climaxing in Luna UST’s multi-billion dollar collapse in May.
With the above considerations in mind, OUSD has been developed by Origin as a fully collateralized, decentralized stablecoin with groundbreaking yield generation mechanics.
OGN is the governance and value accrual token for all of Origin's products, including OUSD. Holders can stake OGN for xOGN, which carries voting rights and economic power.
The OUSD protocol deploys automated strategies on Compound (COMP), Convex (CVX), Curve (CRV), and AAVE (AAVE).Token holders vote on which protocols to utilize in order to generate maximal yield while eliminating capital risk. This way, investors can let other token holders decide where to earn yield for them, or vote on which protocols to use themselves.
In contrast to other stable-focused DeFi protocols in the space, OUSD requires no staking or locking of funds in order to generate yield.
Rather, yield on OUSD is delivered straight to your wallet, allowing users the freedom to transact freely while earning passive yield.
USDT, DAI, and USDC maintain a dollar peg by holding reserves of USD and hard assets like treasury bonds. These primarily serve as stable mediums of exchange. However, allocating these stables to established DeFi protocols allows for yield generation.
Conversely, OUSD earns yield intrinsically and is fully collateralized by reserves of USDC, DAI, and USDT deployed to various strategies in order to accrue interest.
Earning interest with OUSD is a straightforward and pain-free process. For example:
Deposits of USDC, DAI, and USDT are allocated across premier DeFi protocols to generate yield via a three-pronged approach:
The OUSD ecosystem is driven by a commitment to true decentralization. All metrics are transparent and easily accessible:
OUSD is the first stablecoin that earns yield directly in your wallet. Due to the protocol’s novel mechanics, there is no need to stake or lock up your OUSD in order to earn rewards.
This is a drastic departure from the norm, where other stablecoins require constant staking and unstaking in order to generate yield. Beyond allowing users to freely transact OUSD, this novel approach eliminates the time and gas costs associated with traditional yield generating stablecoins.
While a host of self-custody Web3 wallets are available, Metamask remains the most widely used, with robust support. To buy OUSD through a decentralized exchange, install metamask by visiting the official site. Once added, you’ll be prompted to either import an existing account or create a new wallet. Next, enter and confirm your wallet’s password.
The wallet can be added as a Chrome extension, or installed on mobile devices via the official Android and iOS apps.
You’ll be prompted to watch a short video on the importance of securing your wallet. Please take the time to do so, as wallet security is of paramount importance. With self-custody comes responsibility, and it’s vital that your Secret Recovery Phrase is kept safe and held solely by you.
Metamask will then generate your recovery phrase and ask you to confirm the correct order.
That’s it! You now have a brand new Web3 Wallet home for your OUSD.
After setting up your Metamask Wallet, you’ll need to purchase either USDT, USDC, or DAI via a traditional exchange, such as Coinbase or Binance.
After purchasing your choice of DAI, USDC, or USDT, deposit your stablecoins to your MetaMask wallet.
Next, navigate to https://www.ousd.com/swap.
Connect your wallet via the button in the top right corner, and swap your desired amount of stables for OUSD to instantly begin earning yield!
Alternatively, you can either purchase OUSD via the Kucoin pair or directly on the Uniswap V3 USDT/OUSD pair using your MetaMask wallet.
OUSD may not automatically reflect in your wallet as Metamask only recognizes a limited range of tokens. To rectify this, navigate to the bottom right of your Wallet and click “import tokens." On the next screen you’ll be prompted to either search for OUSD (a new, experimental feature) or enter the custom token address.
Should you decide to add OUSD as a custom token, simply input the token address:
0x2A8e1E676Ec238d8A992307B495b45B3fEAa5e86
Metamask should fill in the ticker (OUSD) and decimals (18) automatically. Once added, OUSD should reflect in your wallet along with your holdings.
Like any other yield-generating stablecoin, interest earned by OUSD varies according to factors including volume, activity, and the health of strategy allocations.
OUSD’s APY (Annual Percentage Yield) and other relevant metrics can be explored by visiting the OUSD analytics dashboard.
At present, OUSD observes a 30-day trailing APY of above 8%.
OUSD has been developed with an emphasis on safety and robust risk management. Origin’s stablecoin is collateralized by three of crypto’s leading stablecoins: USDT, USDC, and DAI.
Both USDC and USDT are centralized stablecoins backed by real-world dollar reserves and are subjected to regular audits and increased scrutiny from regulators.
Conversely, MakerDAO’s DAI is a decentralized stablecoin backed by reserves of both risk-on crypto and stablecoins, with USDC currently accounting for the majority of DAI reserves. Crucially, DAI is overcollateralized, meaning that reserves exceed DAI in circulation in order to provide a buffer against market volatility. At present, DAI is overcollateralized by 126%.
Protocol security is of paramount importance, especially considering that OUSD’s smart contracts are responsible for handling millions of dollars in user funds. In an environment as fast-paced as crypto, proactive security measures are a necessity.
To this end, Origin conducts regular security audits, both internally and externally using premier smart contract security auditing platforms.
Industry-leading security outfit OpenZeppelin conducted a full-scale audit of OUSD over the span of five weeks in October 2021, finding no major issues.
In addition to OpenZeppelin, Origin has worked with Trail of Bits, Solidified, and Certora on OUSD-related audits. A log of all completed audits can be viewed in the OUSD documentation.
Beyond regular internal audits and audits by established security analysts, OUSD’s entirely open-source codebase can be monitored by skilled and dedicated community members to rapidly identify potential threats.
The OUSD ecosystem’s emphasis on community-driven decentralization has been promoted through the protocol's native token, OGN. Holders can stake their OGN for a set period – from one month up to a year. In return, stakers receive economic and voting power in the form of non-transferrable xOGN.
The amount of xOGN one receives is determined by two factors – the amount of OGN staked and the duration it has been staked for. Among other proposals and considerations, OGN stakers determine OUSD strategy allocations through weekly governance votes.
This approach incentivizes users to stake OGN for longer time periods in order to support the protocol, while also ensuring that those most committed to OUSD’s long-term success are rewarded proportionately.
Typical stablecoins, such as OUSD’s USDC, USDT, and DAI reserves, rely solely on collateral to maintain their peg. Rebasing stablecoins, on the other hand, maintain their dollar peg through regular algorithmic adjustments to supply baked into smart contracts.
OUSD employs rebasing to cater for its elastic supply, an approach pioneered by Ampleforth (AMPL). While the likes of Ampleforth use rebasing to both contract and expand supply depending on distance from peg, OUSD’s supply is up only.
It’s important to note that OUSD differs from other rebasing coins in that the token’s dollar peg is supported by underlying collateral, shielding against the issues of price instability that have plagued purely algorithmic stablecoins. One’s balance of OUSD and principal invested should never decrease, unless a failure occurs with one of the underlying reserves or AMM protocols.
OUSD’s elastic supply only expands as more yield is generated and distributed to holders. This supply is rebased as yield is generated and users interact with OUSD smart contracts.
By using Chainlink Keepers, the protocol ensures that this occurs at least once a day.
Founded in 2017 by seasoned tech entrepreneurs Matthew Liu and Josh Fraser, Origin Protocol is committed to bringing innovative DeFi utility to the masses. The team of experienced engineers is constantly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible on the blockchain, bolstered by a wealth of advisors.
Origin’s native token, OGN, closed its first seed round in 2017, followed by a strategic sale in 2018, and a CoinList round later that year. The team raised $38 million in runway, including $3 million in advisor funds invested by leading crypto VC group Pantera Capital.
OUSD was launched in September 2020 on the heels of DeFi summer, offering fresh innovations on prevailing stablecoin dynamics in the space.
OUSD offers several key benefits over present yield-generating stablecoins in the space. Most prominent is the ability to freely transact your OUSD holdings while still earning yield – distributed directly to your wallet.
DeFi remains a niche space with high barriers to entry, and simplifying the usual processes of manually staking and compounding allows users to benefit from the protocol without worrying about manual mechanics and the gas and time cost involved in other mechanisms.
Origin’s commitment to transparency and true decentralization is evidenced by OUSD’s comprehensive, easily accessible analytics regarding APYs, reserves, strategy allocations, and more.
Finally, OUSD is fully collateralized by the industry’s most trusted stablecoins, offering users the peace of mind that funds are being managed responsibly with no risk of depegging.
