In this review, we will examine which key factors contributed to this growth and how the launch of Curve Savings crvUSD (scrvUSD) affected the Curve ecosystem.

Analysis shows that the introduction of scrvUSD, the yield-bearing version of crvUSD, and the launch of the Resupply protocol were the most influential factors behind this substantial increase in circulating supply.

Table of Contents

Growth Drivers of crvUSD

• Launch of the Savings Module (scrvUSD)

• Launch of Resupply

• Reduction of Interest Rates

• Minting of crvUSD via the PegKeeper Mechanism

• crvUSD’s Uniqueness Amid Global Stablecoin Adoption

• Increase in User Engagement and Integrations

• Addition of New Markets and Collateral Types

Directions for Further Scaling of crvUSD

Conclusion

A pivotal event at the end of 2024 was the introduction of Savings crvUSD (scrvUSD) — the yield-bearing version of crvUSD that allows users to deposit crvUSD and earn passive income. By offering a low-risk return (initially 10–20% APR), scrvUSD creates new demand for crvUSD.

The launch of scrvUSD coincided with the lowest point of crvUSD supply and served as a catalyst for renewed growth. Investors purchased crvUSD to deploy it into the yield strategy, reducing circulating supply and keeping the price above peg. This feedback loop led to lower borrowing rates for crvUSD, making loans cheaper, which in turn attracted more borrowers and enabled the issuance of additional crvUSD.

In the first six weeks after scrvUSD’s launch (November–December 2024), crvUSD supply increased by approximately 30% — from ~$60M to ~$78M thanks to new loans. By mid-January 2025, crvUSD supply exceeded $83M, easing the previous decline and setting an accelerated trend, and by May 2025 it surpassed $179M!

The introduction of scrvUSD fundamentally strengthened crvUSD stability and transformed the economic dynamics of the Curve ecosystem, namely:

• Interest Rate Stability. Before scrvUSD, crvUSD borrowing rates could fluctuate around 10–50% APR, deterring some borrowers until scrvUSD established steady demand, held crvUSD price at peg, and forced the algorithmic rate down to 1–4% APR, making crvUSD one of the cheapest DeFi loans.

• Reduction of Rate Volatility. Previously, Curve’s rates were highly volatile, causing concern among potential borrowers. The launch of scrvUSD applied downward pressure on absolute volatility, which continues to decline, primarily due to rate reductions. This indicates a slower pace of rate changes, which benefits borrowers.

• Borrower Convenience. With lowered and predictable rates, lending became more attractive. Sharp peg swings that led to rate spikes and liquidation risk are now offset by scrvUSD, and the LLAMMA mechanism protects users from sudden liquidations. Data shows new loans surged after scrvUSD’s launch — an 8% expansion in crvUSD supply in one week of January 2025, and 747 active loans by May 2025.

• Peg Robustness. scrvUSD acts as a supply sink: when the price falls below $1, buyers acquire and deposit crvUSD into scrvUSD, pushing the price back to $1, and when it exceeds $1, PegKeeper mints new crvUSD via revaluation funds, increasing supply and restoring the $1 peg. Since February 2025, borrowing rates have stabilized and decreased, and crvUSD has maintained peg within a few basis points.

• Fee Distribution. Previously, all borrowing fees went to veCRV holders. After scrvUSD launch, a portion of fees (initially 10%, then 20%, and up to 50% by end-2024) started going to scrvUSD holders. This temporarily reduced veCRV staking rewards, but total fees grew due to market expansion, which benefits everyone in the long term.

• Participant Yields. In the first weeks, scrvUSD holders earned 10–30% APR; yields stabilized at 6–8% by January 2025. By April 2025, as supply and fee share rose to 50%, scrvUSD APY dropped to 1–3%. Borrowers paid 1–4% APR during the same period.

  Despite rate reductions, we observe solid growth of deposits in the scrvUSD vault, explained by high trust in scrvUSD and Curve, and amplified by yield-looping strategies via Resupply:

In conclusion, the launch of scrvUSD positively influenced crvUSD’s peg stability, improved the borrowing experience for users, and opened a new path for income distribution in the Curve ecosystem. Savings crvUSD created a win-win situation: passive income for holders, low rates for borrowers, and increased fee volume for Curve DAO and veCRV stakers.

In March 2025, the external yield protocol Resupply was launched and became a powerful driver of demand for crvUSD. Thanks to Resupply, the total value locked (TVL) on LlamaLend more than doubled within days of launch, rising from $38M to approximately $84M.

Resupply allows depositing yield-bearing stablecoins (scrvUSD and others) and borrowing a new stablecoin, reUSD, to perform leveraged yield farming. Users deposit crvUSD into Curve’s lending markets and borrow reUSD to swap back for fresh crvUSD, repeating the cycle to achieve leveraged returns.

The reUSD/scrvUSD pool — a core inflow driver for crvUSD

These pools also add significant new fee revenue to the system.

By early May, Resupply attracted $100M+ in reUSD, and crvUSD market capitalization exceeded $179M.

scrvUSD and Resupply contributed to lowering rates below market averages. The chart below shows two-week average interest rates on Aave (borrowing USDC or USDT) compared to crvUSD issuance rates on Curve.

The PegKeeper system also played a major role in scaling supply. After Resupply launched, PegKeeper minted over $50M of additional crvUSD.

PegKeeper reached a new all-time high with debt exceeding $57M, directly boosting crvUSD market cap.

Thanks to scrvUSD, in early 2025 renewed demand pushed crvUSD price above $1, prompting PegKeeper to mint extra crvUSD and sell it into pools, restoring the $1 peg.

By May 9, 2025, over $57M in crvUSD had been issued solely by PegKeeper actions, without new collateralized loans.

PegKeeper agents autonomously mint or burn crvUSD to maintain the $1 peg, playing a key role in stability during market volatility.

When price dips below peg, PegKeeper buys and burns crvUSD, and arbitrage profit goes to Curve DAO, turning peg arbitrage into protocol revenue.

Amid rapid stablecoin market growth, crvUSD stands out as one of the few stablecoins backed solely by decentralized crypto assets.

Unlike many other decentralized stablecoins that rely on external oracles for asset pricing, crvUSD uses on-chain prices directly from Curve liquidity pools, avoiding third-party risks.

It is the only stablecoin with a built-in liquidation protection mechanism (in light of DEFI-Money fork shutdown).

crvUSD markets offer best-in-class LTV ratios, making capital efficiency superior to other leading DeFi lending protocols.

Deep integration into the broader Curve ecosystem creates network effects that accelerate adoption.

Against this backdrop of features and benefits, confidence in the technology is rising, and the user base for Curve’s stablecoin is expanding significantly.

Active crvUSD borrowing positions reached 700+ by Q2 2025, reflecting broad adoption. scrvUSD attracted hundreds of holders in the first months (over 200 addresses initially), and scrvUSD liquidity pools pairing it with other stablecoins (DOLA, sUSDe, etc.) launched on Curve.

scrvUSD is integrated with yield derivative protocols Spectra, Napier, and Pendle, enabling holders to earn additional income by trading YT and PT tokens. Spectra, built on Curve technologies, proudly bears the status "Powered by Curve."

Additionally, crvUSD was deployed on other networks, such as Sonic and Optimism (with an incentive program starting in April 2025), opening access to new users. These integrations expanded crvUSD utility beyond the Curve ecosystem.

Expanding supported collateral types has increased crvUSD’s accessibility and appeal. Curve DAO added three new collateral assets:

• cbBTC by Coinbase — wrapped Bitcoin with institutional-grade security

• weETH by Ether.fi — decentralized, non-custodial liquid staking token

• LBTC by Lombard Finance — liquid, yield-generating, natively cross-chain asset

These new markets feature enhanced implementations that significantly reduce slippage when using leverage, allow specifying additional “health” parameters for positions, and delegate position management to other smart contracts.

ket Expansion:

• Plans to add support for additional collateral types, with special focus on real-world assets

• Continued integration with sidechain and Layer 2 solutions via a simple deployment tool for any EVM-compatible network — Curve-Lite

  Curve-Lite is a lightweight, DAO-controlled DEX solution deployable with a single CLI command from the curvefi/curve-core GitHub repository

• Building liquidity bridges to facilitate multi-chain usage

Protocol Integrations:

• Establishing deeper Curve-based integrations with new DeFi protocols. The successful launch of Resupply — which drove crvUSD usage — underscores the importance of such partnerships.

• For example, the upcoming YieldBasis protocol will leverage crvUSD infrastructure to implement impermanent-loss-free strategies.

• Creating liquidity incentive programs with partner platforms

Technical Enhancements:

• Further refinement of crvUSD and LLAMMA contracts for enhanced usability and greater capital efficiency

• Development of additional yield-generation strategies for holders

• UI and UX improvements

The launch of the scrvUSD yield module and the Resupply protocol, coupled with active PegKeeper operations, have been key drivers of crvUSD’s rapid growth — they strengthened the peg, lowered borrowing rates, and created an additional revenue source for holders and the DAO.

Thanks to market expansion, integrations, and the addition of new collateral types, crvUSD has secured a unique position among decentralized stablecoins and is poised for further scaling.

We should also note the growing trust, understanding, and adoption of the technologies underpinning crvUSD, thanks to the efforts of the team and the community — many thanks to all.