Enhanced Yield for Bitcoin Holders
Key takeaway: Helios keeps yields denominated and paid in real BTC and can spike into the 13 %-15 % range when pool utilization and protocol rebates stack—without taking wrapped-asset or CeFi counter-party risk. Competitors often headline bigger numbers by quoting USD returns on BTC deposits or by assuming bridge/custody risk. A fresh, side-by-side look—including the new Babylon BTC-staking layer—clarifies where each extra percentage point really comes from.
How the Adaptive Engine Pushes Helios APY Past 10 %
30 % (calm)
3 %
1.5 %
0 bp
1.5 %
75 % (busy)
9 %
6 %
+150 bp
7.5 %
92 % (stressed)
18 %
12 %
+300 bp
15 %
Add-on “juice”—up to 1.5 pp liquidation-fee cashback, 3-5 pp HELIOS incentives, and ≈ 0.5 pp hBTC auto-compounding—turns a raw 10 % rate into 13 %-15 % BTC APY while the risk engine still enforces a ≤ 0.1 % default ceiling.
Peer-group Comparison (May 2025)
Helios
Native BTC (TSS vault)
75 % in calm, auto-tightens
2 %-4 % base, 15 %+ peak
Same (BTC)
3 %-18 % curve
Insurance reserve, zero bridges
Morpho Blue (cbBTC/USDC)
Wrapped cbBTC on Base
86 % static
≈ 3 %-4 %
4 %-6 % (USD)
3 %-5 %
Bridge + wrapper risk; USD inflates APY ([cbBTC/USDC market - Morpho
Coinbase Bitcoin Yield Fund
Off-chain fund
N/A
4 %-8 % after fees
Same (BTC)
N/A
Lock-ups, CeFi custody (Coinbase Asset Management launches the Coinbase Bitcoin Yield ...)
Babylon staking
Native BTC staked to PoS L2
N/A
~8 %-10 % points-based^
9 % blog headline
N/A
Rewards not yet liquid; 100-day lock-in (Bitcoin Staking is Here. How BTC holders are getting 9% yields…, Bitcoin Staking on Babylon - Stake BTC To Secure DeFi Networks)
Aave V3 WBTC.e (Avalanche)
WBTC.e wrapper
70 %
0.04 %
0.04 %
0.66 %
Oversupplied pool (USDT to Launch on Bitcoin's LN (Taproot assets))
*Most competitors promote USD APY: if BTC rallies, the USD return inflates even when the BTC yield is flat. ^Babylon currently pays “points” that may convert to tokens; yield is not liquid today.
Real BTC Demand vs. “Printed” Yield
Where Helios’s borrow demand comes from
Miners & OTC desks borrow secured BTC at 1 %-4 % APR to smooth cash-flow or hedge exposure. Documentation from Ledn and Antalpha’s $1.6 B loan book confirms these ranges. (Best Bitcoin Loan Rates In 2025: Comparing Leading Providers - Ledn, Miner Weekly: Asia Dominates Antalpha's $1.6B Bitcoin Loan Book)
Funding on Bitcoin-native perp venues spikes to 16 %–23 % annualized in risk-on periods. (CoinGecko, Hyperliquid Stats)
A borrower can therefore pay 9 %–15 % APR, remain profitable, and push Helios’s lender APY to 13 %–15 % when utilization > 90 %.
Why competitor yields look larger
Morpho’s 6 % banner is calculated in USD while interest accrues in cbBTC. If BTC rallies 30 %, the displayed USD yield pops even though the cbBTC paid out is unchanged—an optical illusion. Helios quotes and pays only in BTC satoshis, so 3 % means +0.03 BTC on a 1 BTC deposit, regardless of price.
Putting It All Together
Helios base case: 2 %-4 % BTC APY under normal utilization—already 10-100× higher than wrapped-BTC pools on Aave.
High-demand case: Utilization > 90 % plus protocol rebates drives depositor returns into the 13 %-15 % BTC APY zone, still under automated risk caps.
Comparative edge: BTC L2 stakings(Babylon, etc.) offers similar headline yield but locks coins for 100 days and pays in points; Morpho inflates USD banners and carries bridge risk; Coinbase Yield Fund inserts CeFi fees and custody.
For Bitcoin holders who want pure Bitcoin, native custody, BTC-denominated clarity, deterministic risk controls, and the capacity to earn > 10 % in true demand spikes Helios now stands out as the most balanced—and occasionally most lucrative—yield venue in the 2025 market.
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