For years, I did what everyone else did I kept my money in a bank, assuming it was the safest, smartest place for it. After all, that’s what we’ve been told, right? Open a savings account, earn a little interest, and let your money “work for you.”
Except, if you’ve ever looked at your bank statement, you know that’s not how it works. The interest you earn is almost laughable a fraction of a percent, maybe enough to cover a cup of coffee after a year of saving. Meanwhile, the banks are making billions off our deposits, using them to earn 4-5% on U.S. Treasury bills while keeping the profits to themselves.
I started asking myself, why am I letting them profit off my money while I get almost nothing? That’s when I started looking deeper into crypto and the rise of yield-bearing stablecoins a shift that could challenge traditional banking and give people like us a real alternative.
The Truth About Banks: They Profit While We Get Pennies
Let’s be honest: banks don’t exist to help us they exist to profit off us.
When we deposit our hard-earned money, we assume it just sits in our account, waiting for us to use it. But that’s not what happens. The bank immediately puts that money to work, lending it out, investing it, and earning far more than they ever give back to us.
- U.S. banks are currently earning 4-5% interest on Treasury bills.
- Meanwhile, the average savings account interest rate is 0.45% APY a joke compared to what they’re making.
- Banks like JPMorgan Chase made over $50 billion in net interest income in 2023money earned from our deposits.
And the UK isn’t much different.
- UK banks are earning around 5.25% on Bank of England base rate deposits, while the average easy-access savings account pays just 2.4% APY.
- The UK’s major banks made a combined £45 billion in net interest income in 2023, with Lloyds, Barclays, and HSBC profiting massively from the interest rate gap.
- More than £250 billion sits in UK accounts earning 1% or less, meaning billions in potential earnings are being kept by the banks instead of benefiting customers.
The pattern is clear. Whether in the U.S. or the UK, banks are leveraging our money to generate huge profits, while we see barely anything in return.
Would you like to add any UK-specific references to stablecoins and alternative savings options?
And here’s the kicker: We can’t access the same opportunities they can. If I want to put my money in a high-yield investment, I must navigate complicated financial products, deal with restrictions, or accept higher risks. The banks? They just sit back and collect free money from the government while paying us almost nothing.
That’s why the rise of yield-bearing stablecoins caught my attention because for the first time, regular people have access to the same financial advantages that banks have been hoarding for themselves.
How Stablecoins Are Breaking the Banking Model
Stablecoins started out as digital versions of cash, making it easier to move money across blockchains. They were great for trading, protecting funds from volatility, and accessing DeFi platforms. But they still had the same problem as banks: the issuers were keeping all the yield.
Take USDT (Tether) and USDC (Circle)the two biggest stablecoins. They’re backed by U.S. Treasury bills, which means they earn billions of dollars in interest every year. But do they share any of that with the people holding their stablecoins? Not a chance.
That’s why Tether made over $6.2 billion in profit last year not by offering better technology, but by keeping the yield from Treasury investments for themselves.
Now, a new wave of yield-bearing stablecoins is changing the game. Instead of giving all the profits to issuers, these stablecoins let users earn yield directly just by holding them in their wallets.
For the first time, we don’t need banks to access real yield.
The Rise of Yield-Bearing Stablecoins: A New Way to Save and Earn
If you’re like me, you’ve probably looked at your bank account and wondered, “Isn’t there a better way?”
The answer is yes and it’s already here.
Yield-bearing stablecoins offer something banks never would:
- Real yield (3-5% APY) without needing to lock up funds.
- No middlemen taking a cut.
- Full control over your money always.
A few projects are leading the charge, giving people a true alternative to traditional savings accounts. Here’s how they compare:
1. Noble (USDN) – Passive Yield with Full Flexibility
- Backed by U.S. Treasury bills
- Yield: ~4.15% APY, automatically earned every 30 seconds
- No staking or lockups required
- Designed for Cosmos, Modular, and EVM compatibility
- Developers can customize how yield is distributed
Who this is for: If you want a stablecoin that works like a high-yield savings account, Noble is one of the best options. You don’t have to do anything special just hold USDN, and it generates passive income for you.
2. Ethena (USDe) – Higher Yields, But Higher Risk
- Backed by: A mix of staked ETH and shorting futures
- Yield: Can be much higher (sometimes 10%+), but fluctuates
- Risk Factor: Not backed 1:1 by fiat assets like Noble or USDC
- Earning comes from funding rates on perpetual contracts
Who this is for: If you’re comfortable with more risk and want higher potential yields, Ethena could be an option. But it’s not truly a stablecoin it’s an algorithmic synthetic dollar, meaning it relies on derivatives markets that can be volatile.
For me, Noble is the clear winner because it offers bank-level yield without the risk of algorithmic models.
What This Means for Regular People Like Us
I know what you might be thinking this all sounds great, but what does it mean for everyday people?
Here’s the bottom line: if enough people move their savings into yield-bearing stablecoins, banks will have to compete.
Imagine if:
- Millions of people started using stablecoins instead of savings accounts.
- Banks were forced to increase interest rates just to keep customers.
- Crypto finally became the default financial system, not just an alternative.
We’re already seeing signs of this shift:
- BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and PayPal are launching tokenized assets, bringing stablecoin-like products into traditional finance.
- Regulators are scrambling to catch up, realizing that yield-bearing stablecoins pose a serious challenge to banks.
- DeFi platforms are integrating these stablecoins, making them even easier to use.
The adoption curve is about to spike and once people realize they don’t need banks to earn real yield, we could see a financial revolution unlike anything before.
Are You Ready for the Change?
This isn’t just about crypto anymore. This is about how money works and who gets to control it.
For years, we’ve let banks and financial institutions keep us trapped in a system where they make all the money, and we get whatever scraps they decide to throw our way.
Now, we have a real alternative a way to earn without giving control to banks, without hidden fees, and without middlemen siphoning profits.
I’ve already started making the shift. The question is are you going to wait until the banks force you to adapt, or will you get ahead of the curve?
Hopefully, you have enjoyed today’s article. Thanks for reading! Have a fantastic day! Live from the Platinum Crypto Trading Floor.
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