- Maker Protocol’s annualized revenue reaches a 2-year pinnacle of $165.4 million, boosted by a sharp rise in DAI stablecoin supply.
- Escalation in short-term U.S. Treasury yield, comprising 57.7% of MakerDAO’s total revenue, further amplifies the protocol’s earnings.
The Meteoric Rise of Maker’s Revenues
In the constantly evolving DeFi landscape, the Maker Protocol, a pioneering stablecoin-issuing platform operating on the Ethereum blockchain, has recently emerged as a force to be reckoned with. Governed by the collective decision-making of its MKR token holders, known as the MakerDAO community, the platform has witnessed significant growth.
Amid the rising tide of interest in decentralized finance (DeFi), data from Makerburn.com reveals a surge in DAI stablecoin supply, touching a 5-month zenith of 5.35 billion. This surge reflects a broader trend in the DeFi sector, with luminaries like Justin Sun and entities like OlympusDAO capitalizing on the lucrative returns offered by Maker deposits.
What’s Driving the Boom?
A pronounced factor in this growth trajectory is the exponential increase in deposits into the protocol’s DAI Savings Rate (DSR). This metric swelled nearly fourfold, escalating from $340 million to an impressive $1.3 billion in a week, as illuminated by a Dune dashboard curated by Sebastien Derivaux, MakerDAO’s asset-liability lead.
The DSR serves as a mechanism for DAI holders to leverage the protocol’s revenue streams. By depositing DAI into the DSR, users stand to benefit from yields emanating from collateral deposits, in addition to fees tendered by Maker’s clientele.
In a strategic move on August 6, the MakerDAO community greenlit a temporary augmentation of annual yields, elevating them from 3.19% to a more appealing 8%. High-profile deposits soon followed; Justin Sun and OlympusDAO contributed a staggering $148.5 million and $124.8 million in DAI respectively, aiming to capitalize on these elevated yields.
Compounding the revenue boost was the amplification of the short-term U.S. Treasury yield, which peaked at a five-month high of 4.91%. Given Maker Protocol’s significant investment in U.S. government bonds — accounting for 57.7% of its total revenue — this uptick in yield delivered a considerable enhancement to its earnings.
Sebastien Derivaux, sharing insights with Decrypt, expressed optimism about the sustained high revenue, particularly with the prospective addition of returns from stablecoin deposits by Paxos and Gemini. This aligns with the USDC yields witnessed through Coinbase Custody, marking a culmination of a year-long effort to position these assets as yielding.
