The Top 3 On-Chain Yield Strategies Worth Watching Right Now

[Chainchatter]

If you’ve spent any time in DeFi, you know one thing for sure, yield isn’t magic. It always has a source whether market demand, borrower activity, protocol incentives, or liquidity provisioning economics.

Here are three dominant strategies explored today that account for most stablecoin and ETH-based yield on-chain on Summer.fi.

 

1. USDC on Base: The Lower-Risk Workhorse

If there’s a default yield strategy in 2025, it’s USDC lending on Base.

Base has become something of a safe haven for stablecoin flows because:

• Low gas fees — more efficient lending markets
  On Base, small depositors compete with big allocators on equal footing.
   

• High utilization for stablecoins
  Demand for leverage, LP hedging, and market-making keeps borrowing active.
   

• USDC dominance
  Coinbase’s influence and partnerships mean USDC is the base asset for most strategies on the chain.
   

Yields here tend to be more stable and predictable because they’re driven by organic borrower demand, not short-term incentives or speculative token emissions.

This is why many allocators see Base USDC vaults as the “lower-risk core” of a portfolio, with steady returns without the volatility of mainnet leverage cycles.

 

2. USDC on Ethereum Mainnet: The Higher-Risk, Higher-Reward Version

Same token, different chai and completely different risk profile.

On Ethereum mainnet, USDC yield is shaped by:

• More sophisticated borrower activity
  Think delta-neutral traders, leverage seekers, structured product arbitrage, and institutional desks.
   

• Higher absolute yields due to volatile utilization
  When market volatility spikes, mainnet borrowers pull heavily on USDC liquidity.
   

• Larger, more capital-intensive protocols
  Aave, Maker, Morpho, Euler, and others create deeper liquidity but also more complex risk surfaces.
   

Mainnet tends to offer higher returns than Base because it’s the home of large-scale leverage and deeper systemic risk — liquidations, sudden utilization spikes, and gas-driven inefficiencies can all drive APR up (or down) quickly.

This strategy makes sense for users who want stablecoin yield but are willing to take on:

• more variable rates
   

• exposure to more active borrower segments
   

• higher transaction cost environments
   

It’s the same USDC, but a very different engine powering the yield.

 

3. ETH on Ethereum Mainnet: The OG Higher-Risk, Higher-Reward Play

ETH-based strategies continue to dominate when market appetite shifts toward risk-on behavior.

ETH yields on mainnet typically come from:

• ETH borrowers seeking long leverage
  When traders borrow ETH to long ETH, lenders earn strong yield.
   

• Liquid staking derivatives (LSDs and LRTs)
  These bring an embedded baseline yield + additional layers of staking economics.
   

• Structured lending markets
  Vaults using stETH, wstETH, or re-staking assets as collateral can push rates significantly higher during volatile periods.
   

Unlike stablecoins, ETH is not pegged, so lenders face subtle but important dynamics:

• The yield is often higher, but so is volatility.
   

• Borrower behavior is more cyclical — when markets heat up, yields skyrocket.
   

• Liquidations can cascade when ETH price swings, affecting utilization and APR.
   

ETH vaults are typically used by allocators who want:

• exposure to ETH-native activity,
   

• higher upside in bull cycles,
   

• or a way to monetize ETH positions without selling.
   

It’s the classic “risk-on” counterpart to stablecoin strategies.

 

Where Does Yield Actually Come From?

Across these three strategies, yields primarily originate from:

• Borrower demand (leverage, liquidity, hedging)
   

• Staking or re-staking returns (for ETH derivatives)
   

• Protocol incentives (less common, more temporary)
   

• Market-making liquidity needs
   

Summer.fi makes this transparent by showing rate components, risk factors, and real-time utilization, so users see exactly what they’re earning and why.

 

Why Does Summer.fi Feature These Three?

Because these are the engines of DeFi yield today. These vaults represent:

• Sustainable lending activity
   

• Assets with clear risk models
   

• Markets large enough for deeper allocations
   

• Strategies used by both retail and institutional users
   

Whether a user wants conservative yield (USDC on Base) or risk-on exposure (ETH mainnet vaults), these three strategies cover the spectrum of on-chain income with clarity and transparency.

USDC Base, USDC Mainnet, and ETH Mainnet are the top three arenas where real yield is being generated right now.

If you want to explore each vault type and compare them side-by-side, Summer.fi provides the simplest way to dig into the data, understand the mechanics, and allocate with confidence.

Check out: https://summer.fi | https://summer.fi/earn