Stable Income Strategies During Market Volatility

In April 2025, the global financial markets experienced severe fluctuations due to Trump's tariff policy. Trump announced to implement "reciprocal tariffs" on major trading partners, setting a baseline tariff of 10% and imposing higher rates on specific countries. This decision triggered a strong market reaction, with the S&P 500 losing $5.8 trillion in market value within just four days, marking the largest single-week loss since the 1950s. The price of Bitcoin also fluctuated between $80,000 and $90,000.

Federal Reserve Chairman Powell stated that tariffs could push up inflation and suppress growth, but the Fed will not intervene in the market by cutting interest rates, instead focusing policy on long-term data. Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan have raised the probability of a U.S. economic recession to 20% and 45%, respectively. In this uncertain market environment, how should investors respond? Low-risk yield products based on stablecoins may be a wise choice, and the following will introduce four stablecoin yield products worth considering.

Spark Saving USDC ( Ethereum )

Users can deposit USDC through the Spark platform to participate in the Savings USDC product. The earnings mainly come from the Sky Savings Rate (SSR), which is supported by income generated from cryptocurrency collateral loan fees, U.S. Treasury investments, and providing liquidity to other platforms. USDC is exchanged for USDS at a 1:1 ratio through the Sky PSM and deposited into the SSR vault to earn returns, and the value of the sUSDC tokens increases as earnings accumulate.

Risk Assessment: Low. USDC has high stability, and Spark's multiple audits reduce the risk of smart contracts. However, attention should be paid to the potential impact of market fluctuations on liquidity.

Berachain BYUSD|HONEY (Berachain)

Users can provide liquidity for the BYUSD/HONEY pool in Berachain's BeraHub and stake the obtained LP tokens in the rewards treasury to earn BGT. The earnings mainly come from BGT rewards (3.41% APR) and trading fees within the pool (0.01% APR). BGT is Berachain's non-transferable governance token, which can be burned 1:1 for BERA and share the fee income from core dApps.

Risk Assessment: Low to Medium. BYUSD and HONEY are stablecoins with stable prices; Berachain's PoL mechanism has been audited, and the smart contract risk is relatively low. However, BGT rewards may fluctuate due to adjustments in emissions.

Uniswap V4 USDC-USDT0 Liquidity Provision (Uniswap V4)

Through the Merkl platform, users can provide liquidity for the USDC/USDT pool of Uniswap V4. Uniswap V4 introduces a "hook" mechanism that allows developers to customize pool functions, such as dynamic fee adjustments and automatic rebalancing, enhancing capital efficiency and yield potential.

Source of income: UNI token incentives.

Risk Assessment: Low to Moderate. The USDC/USDT pool is a stablecoin pair, with lower price volatility risks, but it is important to be aware of smart contract risks and the potential decline in yields after the incentive period ends.

Echelon Market USDC (Aptos)

Users can deposit USDC on the Echelon Market platform to participate in supply. This product is integrated with the Thala protocol, offering USDC supply interest (5.35%) and Thala's thAPT rewards (3.66%). thAPT is Thala's deposit certificate, minted and redeemed at a 1:1 ratio for APT, with a 0.15% fee charged upon redemption.

Risk assessment: Low to moderate. USDC has high stability, but attention should be paid to the smart contract risks of the Aptos ecosystem and the impact of thAPT redemption fees on returns. Instant withdrawal offers high liquidity, but market volatility may affect the value of thAPT rewards.

Summary

During the current market volatility, these low-risk yield products based on stablecoins may provide investors with a relatively safe option. However, investors still need to carefully assess the risks and returns of each product and make decisions based on their own risk tolerance. Market conditions change rapidly, making it crucial to continuously monitor market dynamics and product performance.