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This document is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice.All views expressed are my own opinions and are based on my current understanding of the crvUSD system and related protocols. The information presented here may be incomplete, simplified, or inaccurate, and there may be additional risks not covered in this paper.

DeFi protocols involve significant risk, including the potential loss of principal. Users should conduct their own independent research and, where appropriate, consult with qualified professionals before making any financial decisions.

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This paper explains how users can benefit from low borrow rates on crvUSD by minting crvUSD on Curve and deploying it into relatively simple yield strategies. It does not assume prior knowledge of Curve, crvUSD, or DeFi lending systems.

It is written for users who may not be familiar with crvUSD at all, and it focuses on:

• How minting crvUSD works
• Why borrow rates can be low (or even negative)
• How users can earn yield with minted crvUSD
• What risks exist, and how different risk appetites map to different strategies

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Important terminology clarification

Throughout this paper, “borrowing crvUSD” always refers to minting crvUSD from a mint market on Curve.

Curve has two different market types:

• Mint markets → crvUSD is created (minted) against crypto collateral
• Borrow markets → crvUSD is borrowed from liquidity supplied by other users

This paper only discusses mint markets but exactly the same principals can be applied to borrow markets as well (only difference is how the borrow rate changes).

You can read about the difference here:

https://docs-curvedocs.vercel.app/user/llamalend/overview#different-market-types

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Who this paper is not for

This paper is not suitable for users who:

• Are uncomfortable managing collateralized borrowing positions
• Require guaranteed principal protection or fixed returns
• Do not want exposure to smart contract risk under any circumstances
• Are unwilling to monitor positions during periods of market stress

Minting crvUSD and deploying it into yield strategies is a capital-efficiency tool, not a risk-free product. Users should be comfortable with DeFi-native risks before proceeding.

What is crvUSD?

crvUSD is Curve’s decentralized USD stablecoin. Instead of being backed by bank deposits or off-chain assets, crvUSD is backed by over-collateralized crypto assets such as ETH or BTC through Curve’s lending system, LlamaLend.

Users mint crvUSD by depositing crypto collateral into a mint market and minting crvUSD against it. As long as the position remains sufficiently collateralized, users keep full exposure to their collateral. Once the minted crvUSD is repaid, the collateral can be withdrawn again.