Is Usual Protocol Safe?
Risk Grade: C- (54/100)
Usual Protocol is rated as elevated risk — multiple novel mechanisms and notable interaction risks.
Moderate risk — already depegged once due to unilateral team action, and the team retains full control over critical parameters
A stablecoin protocol where USD0 is backed by US Treasury bills, and USD0++ is a bond version that locks your stablecoins for extra yield. It manages $400M in deposits. Its C grade reflects the January 2025 crisis when the team unilaterally changed redemption rules, crashing the bond token to $0.89 and triggering mass liquidations.
TVL
$111M
Mechanisms
7
Interactions
5
Value Grade
C+
Key Risks for Usual Protocol Users
The team changed redemption rules without a vote in January 2025, crashing USD0++ to $0.89 -- they can do this again at any time
Despite claiming to be decentralized, a small team controls all critical settings through private wallets with no community oversight
All the Treasury bill collateral is held by one company (Hashnote) -- if that company fails, your stablecoins become worthless with no on-chain backup
Top Risk Factors
- •USD0++ depegged to $0.89 in Jan 2025 after unilateral governance decision changed redemption floor to $0.87, breaking user expectations
- •No functional DAO — protocol team controls multi-sigs and can unilaterally change critical parameters despite decentralisation claims
- •Collateral custodied by Hashnote (off-chain) introduces counterparty risk and opaque real-time collateral verification
Risk Score Breakdown
Usual Protocol's highest risk area is Vitality Risk (7/10). Here's how each dimension contributes to the overall 54/100 score:
Read the Full Usual Protocol Risk Report
This protocol has 2 collapse scenarios. 1 critical and 3 high-severity interaction risks identified. See the full mechanism classification, interaction matrix, and deep-dive recommendations.
View Full Report →Considering an investment?