GHO is the native decentralised stablecoin of the Aave protocol, minted by users against collateral they supply to Aave and pegged to the US dollar. It is overcollateralised and burned on repayment, with stability managed by Aave governance through borrow rates and facilitators. GHO scores 70/100 (Tier 3) on the RWTS Trust Score: it inherits Aave's mature, heavily audited lending infrastructure and deep liquidity, but its peg and solvency depend on collateral health, governance parameters and liquidations rather than a cash reserve. The yield shown reflects DeFi venues that pay to hold or supply GHO.
- Issuer / protocol
- Aave
- Backing
- Multi-collateral (via Aave lending positions)
- Redemption / lock-up
- None
- Audit & proof of reserves
- Independently audited
- Availability
- Global
- Chain
- Ethereum
- Tier
- Tier 3 — Secured DeFi
- Contract
- 0x40D1…a4b7
Scored on the published RWTS methodology (v1.1), reviewed quarterly and on material events. Ratings are independent and never pay-influenced.
Calculations are indicative. Actual yields may vary.
Price data from CoinGecko. Not financial advice.
| Pool | DEX | Liquidity | 24h Vol |
|---|---|---|---|
| GHO / crvUSD | curve | $1.6M | $1.9M |
| GHO / cbBTC | curve | $560K | $974 |
| GHO / WETH | curve | $552K | $1K |
| GHO / USDT | uniswap | $289K | $159K |
| GHO / fxUSD | curve | $117K | $8K |
| GHO / USDT | balancer | $74K | $146K |
Aggregated across public DEX pools holding more than $10K in liquidity. Daily snapshot, not a live feed. Source: DexScreener. Deep, distributed liquidity makes a token easier to enter and exit without slippage.
We are not publishing a current rate for this asset, so we will not project earnings from one.
Overcollateralized; multiple audits; concentration in Aave borrowers.
Methodology v1.0 · independent rating · published rubric · no issuer payments
Minted by Aave borrowers against multi-asset collateral positions on Aave V3 (ETH, stETH, USDC, WBTC, etc.); maintains 150%+ collateralization via Aave's liquidation engine.
All GHO mints are tied to Aave borrower positions visible on-chain; Aave protocol metrics publicly reported (aave.com/dashboard) and regular protocol financial reports published; on-chain transparency + protocol-level reporting framework.
GHO can be repaid (burned) for collateral release at any time; instant 1:1 conversion to USDC via Aave PSM module (added 2024). Sub-minute end-to-end USDC convertibility. Right 4/8, route 7/7: three or more routes the issuer cannot close.
One of DeFi's most-audited protocols: Trail of Bits, OpenZeppelin, Sigma Prime, Peckshield, ABDK Consulting, Certora formal verification; active Immunefi top-tier bug bounty ($1M+ pool); ten years of Aave protocol operational hardening.
Aave Companies registered (UK); Aave DAO governs the protocol; UK Section 21 financial promotion approver in place; mixed registered-entity + DAO structure with published frameworks.
GHO launched July 2023 (~22 months as of May 2026). Initial price wobble below peg in early months addressed via PSM module deployment in 2024; price has held tight since. No fund losses or material incidents. Aave protocol itself live since 2017 with no material loss-of-funds incidents.
EARLY_PRICE_WOBBLE_RESOLVEDGHO traded below $1 peg during 2023-early 2024 launch period; Aave DAO deployed PSM module in 2024 to enforce 1:1 USDC convertibility. Peg has held tight since.
Caveats document operational realities that don't change the dimensional score but shape practical use.
Beyond GHO's own score, two structural questions matter: what is it built on, and what has broken before in this part of the market. A high score in isolation can still carry hidden, shared exposure.
What this and similar assets are built on, and where contagion could spread.
The depegs, defaults, and exploits that inform the Track Record dimension.
Liquidity read: TVL of $698.38M indicates healthy on-chain liquidity. Lock-up: None.
Is GHO safe?
GHO (GHO) scores 70/100 on the independent RWTS Trust Score, which places it in Secured DeFi (Tier 3). Tier 3 carries real DeFi exposure: the backing is sound but smart-contract and collateral risk are live, so size positions accordingly. Backing: Multi-collateral (via Aave lending positions). It is independently audited. The score reflects backing, verification, redeemability, audit, regulatory standing, and track record, not headline yield. We rate. You decide.
Exit routes
11/15 · right 4/8 · routes 7/7If the issuer stopped cooperating tomorrow, could you get out?
Yes, by more than one independent route
- independent
Fluid
77.1% of volume. Everything outside it totals 22.9%, well clear of the concentration threshold.
- independent
Uniswap V4
9.3% of volume.
- independent
Curve and 13 further venues
16 venues carry volume, $2.6m of standing pool liquidity.
- issuer
GHO Stability Module
Par swaps into USDC exist but are governed, capacity-limited and can be adjusted by Aave governance.
Route 7 on markets alone. Right 4: GHO is minted against collateral, so a holder who is not a borrower has no unconditional redemption claim, only a governed stability module.
This is the redeemability component of the Trust Score above, which stands at 70/100 (B). Until 1 September 2026 redeemability was a single figure measuring the right to redeem while ignoring how many routes existed to exercise it. Splitting it moved this asset’s score. How the score works
Assessed 2026-09-01. Route independence asks how many ways out the issuer cannot close, not how much the asset trades.