- MakerDAO, the entity managing the Maker Protocol, has approved a proposal to temporarily increase the interest rate for DAI stablecoin holders.
- The proposal, made by Rune Christensen, suggests increasing the DAI Savings Rate (DSR) from 3.19% to a maximum of 8%.
- The proposal, referred to as the Enhanced DAI Savings Rate (EDSR), is a system to temporarily increase the interest rate available to users, and it will decrease over time, even if the DSR usage rate drops.
The article discusses MakerDAO’s recent decision to temporarily increase the interest rate for DAI stablecoin holders. The proposal, made by Rune Christensen, suggests increasing the DAI Savings Rate (DSR) from 3.19% to a maximum of 8%, a rate significantly higher than the yield on stablecoins on major lending platforms.
MakerDAO’s Decision to Increase Interest Rates
MakerDAO, the entity overseeing the Maker Protocol in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, has given the green light to a proposal aimed at temporarily raising the interest rate for DAI stablecoin holders. The proposal was put forward by Rune Christensen, who argued for an increase in the DAI Savings Rate (DSR) from its current 3.19% to a maximum of 8%. This proposed rate is considerably higher than the returns on stablecoins offered by leading lending platforms, and it is expected to attract more users.
The Enhanced DAI Savings Rate (EDSR)
Christensen has dubbed his proposal the Enhanced DAI Savings Rate (EDSR). The EDSR is a system designed to temporarily boost the interest rate available to users. The rate of the EDSR is determined according to the usage rate of the DSR and will decrease as the usage rate increases. Once the usage rate reaches a certain high level, the EDSR will cease to exist. Furthermore, the EDSR will continue to decrease over time and will not increase again, even if the DSR usage rate drops.
The Rationale Behind the Proposal
Christensen pointed out that despite setting a high interest rate in the DeFi space, the total supply of DAI has stabilized, but it has not yet been able to generate sustained growth in new demand and capital inflow. He believes that by raising the interest rate, other DeFi protocols might be encouraged to adopt the DSR. Moreover, due to the complexity involved in switching systems in DeFi, users attracted by the interest rate are likely to stay within the DAI ecosystem. The community vote ended on the 24th, with over 99% in favor, thereby approving Christensen’s proposal.
Conclusion
In addition to the decision to increase the DSR, the MakerDAO community also voted on July 16th to buy back the governance token Maker (MKR) every month. Sam MacPherson, a former MakerDAO staff member now involved with the DAI-centric lending platform Spark Protocol, stated that this proposal is expected to result in the purchase of approximately 700 million yen (about $7 million) worth of MKR each month. This move by MakerDAO to temporarily increase interest rates for DAI holders demonstrates the platform’s commitment to attracting and retaining users in the competitive DeFi space.
