Question 1

What is Usual USD (USD0)?

Accepted Answer

Usual USD (USD0) is a USD-pegged stablecoin issued by the Usual Protocol. It functions as the platform’s base-layer Liquid Deposit Token (LDT), fully backed 1:1 by short-term U.S. Treasury Bill tokens sourced from Real-World Assets (RWA), rather than traditional bank deposits. Designed to be permissionless and composable, USD0 enables seamless integration into the DeFi ecosystem while offering transparent and high-availability utility.

Question 2

What is USD0 used for?

Accepted Answer

USD0 serves several key roles in the Usual ecosystem:

- **Payment and Collateral**  
  Used as a medium of exchange, trading pair, and collateral asset within the Usual Protocol and compatible DeFi platforms.

- **RWA Access Bridge**  
  Offers users programmable, permissionless access to tokenised U.S. Treasury yields via on-chain mechanisms.

- **Peg Maintenance and Redemption**  
  Users can redeem USD0 at a 1:1 ratio for underlying RWA through Usual’s mint and redemption interface, or trade USD0 for other stablecoins on secondary markets.

These interactions are governed by smart contracts and aim to maintain the peg through arbitrage, redemption, and real-time reserve transparency.

Question 3

Who created USD0?

Accepted Answer

USD0 was launched by the Usual Protocol, a platform designed to bridge traditional finance and decentralized systems through RWA integration. The protocol supports institutional and retail participants alike with a focus on transparency and interoperability.

Question 4

Technical Architecture

Accepted Answer

- **Blockchain**  
  USD0 is implemented as an Ethereum-based ERC-20 token, with similar deployments on chains like Arbitrum and Base.

- **Collateral Engine**  
  A mint engine backed by RWA reserves issues USD0 at a fixed 1:1 ratio against deposited Treasury-backed assets or via USDC through trusted collateral providers.

- **Redemption Flow**  
  Redemption can occur either via withdrawal of underlying RWA assets or through peer-to-peer exchanges on secondary markets and decentralized exchanges.

- **Reserve Transparency**  
  Reserves backing USD0 are monitored and reported in real time by institutional fund administrators to maintain peg integrity.