Mountain Protocol
Mountain Protocol was a Bermuda-regulated issuer of USDM, a yield-bearing stablecoin fully backed by short-term US Treasuries held in a bankruptcy-remote SPV. It served institutional DeFi participants, market makers, and exchanges via API and portal before entering wind-down following its 2025 acquisition by Anchorage Digital.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersPembroke, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Mountain Protocol does
Mountain Protocol was a Bermuda-regulated issuer of USDM, a yield-bearing stablecoin fully backed by short-term US Treasuries held in a bankruptcy-remote orphan SPV (USDM Reserves Ltd) under a charitable trust administered by Carey Olsen Fiduciaries Bermuda. USDM was an ERC20 rebasing token whose daily rewardMultiplier accrued Treasury yield directly to holder wallets, with a wrapped variant (wUSDM) built on the ERC-4626 standard to enable integration with DeFi protocols that assume constant balanceOf. The company operated under a Bermuda Monetary Authority Digital Asset Business license (#202302512) and aligned with BMA Single Currency Pegged Stablecoins Guidance, with monthly third-party attestations by Nephos Group verifying full collateralization.
The company's business model was structured around passing Treasury yield through to USDM holders with no explicit fee charged to the user, retaining revenue implicitly via the spread between Treasury yields and operational costs, consistent with the yield-bearing stablecoin category pioneered by Lido's stETH. Go-to-market was institutional: a web portal and API served KYC'd primary users (corporations, DeFi protocols, exchanges, market makers, arbitrageurs) for minting and redeeming USDM at a 1:1 peg using USDC, while secondary users accessed USDM permissionlessly via DEXs and DeFi pools. USDM was natively deployed across eight blockchains (Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, ZKSync Era, Celo, Avalanche), with 24/7 USDC redemption liquidity provided via OTC credit lines rather than direct USDC reserves.
Following a definitive agreement in May 2025 for Anchorage Digital to acquire the company, Mountain Protocol entered an orderly wind-down. Phase 2 concluded on August 22, 2025, closing the primary market, and Phase 3 is shifting remaining USDM Reserves to a Uniswap AMM concentrated liquidity pool while decommissioning the platform. The company is no longer operationally active as a standalone entity.
Mountain Protocol firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Mountain Protocol
- Legal name
- Mountain Protocol Limited
- Website
- https://mountainprotocol.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Closed
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Mountain Protocol was a Bermuda-regulated issuer of USDM, a yield-bearing stablecoin fully backed by short-term US Treasuries held in a bankruptcy-remote SPV. It served institutional DeFi participants, market makers, and exchanges via API and portal before entering wind-down following its 2025 acquisition by Anchorage Digital.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Mountain Protocol industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Stablecoin Issuance
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Exchanges (52321), Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage (5231)
- SIC
- Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- On-Chain Payments & Stablecoin Infrastructure (Issuance, Rails, Treasury) (FSAGAMAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Stablecoins & On-Chain Money (fiat-backed, crypto-backed, algorithmic; issuance/redemption) (FSAPAEAB), Mint/Redeem, Issuance APIs & Treasury Operations Platforms (FSADADAE), Stablecoin Payment Rails & Settlement Networks (Issuer-Led) (FSADADAF), Reserve Management, Custody & Segregated Accounts (Backing Infrastructure) (FSADADAD)
Keywords
Where Mountain Protocol is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Pembroke
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Mountain Protocol business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Yield Spread on US Treasury Holdings: USDM is fully backed by USDM Reserves invested in short-term US Treasuries (average duration ≤60 days), Treasury bills, Treasury ETFs, money market funds, and reverse repurchase agreements. The yield generated by these instruments (e.g., ~3.8% APY referenced in documentation) accrues to USDM holders through the daily rebasing mechanism. Mountain Protocol retains no explicit fee — rewards are presented as a 'net' annualized percentage with no charges. The company's revenue is implicitly generated from the spread between treasury yield and any operational costs, consistent with the yield-bearing stablecoin model.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | No-fee yield-bearing stablecoin (USDM holders earn yield at no cost) |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Mountain Protocol product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Mountain Protocol issues USDM, a rebasing ERC20 stablecoin fully backed by US Treasury bonds, designed to pass through the underlying Treasury yield to holders. The company operated as a Bermuda-regulated Digital Asset Business and subsequently was acquired by Anchorage Digital, after which it entered wind-down.
Product overview
Mountain Protocol offers a suite of stablecoin products centered on USDM, a yield-bearing stablecoin built on ERC20 blockchain technology. The main product is USDM, a rebasing stablecoin that accrues daily rewards from US Treasury holdings. The company provides two access channels: the Mountain Protocol Platform (web portal and API) for institutional Primary Users to mint/redeem USDM, and secondary market access via DEXs and DeFi protocols. A wrapped variant (wUSDM) enables DeFi compatibility with ERC-4626 standard. USDM Reserves are held in bankruptcy-remote segregated accounts, composed of short-term US Treasuries with proof-of-reserves attestations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- USDM: The first permissionless yield-bearing stablecoin, fully backed by U.S. Treasury bonds. USDM is a rebasing ERC20 token that accrues daily rewards to holders.
- wUSDM
Products and services
- USDM
Quantifiable outcome
- USDM holders earn ~3.8% APY (historical) by simply holding the token, with daily compounding via rebasing mechanism
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Mountain Protocol
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Mountain Protocol technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature6 records
Mountain Protocol partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Anchorage DigitalflagshipAnchorage Digital, a federally chartered crypto bank and digital asset custody provider, signed a definitive agreement to acquire Mountain Protocol in September 2025. The acquisition aims to integrate Mountain Protocol's team, technology, and BMA licensing framework into Anchorage Digital to expand its stablecoin capabilities and accelerate institutional adoption of stablecoins. The acquisition was subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approval. Following the acquisition, Mountain Protocol entered an orderly wind-down with Phase 2 concluding August 22, 2025 and Phase 3 shifting USDM Reserves to a Uniswap AMM concentrated liquidity pool.
- FireblockscoreFireblocks provides enterprise-grade digital asset custody infrastructure using MPC (Multi-Party Computation) technology. Mountain Protocol leverages Fireblocks for secure storage and management of private keys for hosted wallets.
- OpenZeppelincoreOpenZeppelin conducted smart contract security audits of the USDM token and provides the battle-tested ERC20 implementation base for the USDM smart contract. OpenZeppelin also hosts the Mountain Protocol Security Center and provides ongoing security monitoring.
- Coinbase PrimecoreCoinbase Prime serves as the onramp partner enabling users to purchase USDM using fiat converted through Coinbase Prime infrastructure. It is referenced as a key counterparty for providing liquidity and transaction facilitation.
- Nephos GroupcoreNephos Group provides monthly reserve attestations verifying USDM Reserves balance, USDM issuance, and full collateralization. Reports are signed by ATA-registered accountants. Attestations span from September 2023 through October 2025 (Final Phase 3 attestation).
- EQ CapitalcoreEQ Capital serves as the licensed Investment Manager for USDM Reserves, managing the investment of treasury holdings in compliance with the investment mandate (short-duration US Treasuries, money market funds, T-bills, ETFs).
- Carey Olsen Fiduciaries Bermuda LimitedflagshipCarey Olsen Fiduciaries Bermuda Limited, a Bermuda-regulated Trust Company, serves as the trustee for the USDM Reserves Ltd orphan SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) structured as a charitable trust. This entity holds USDM Reserves in a bankruptcy-remote setup compliant with the Bermuda DAB Act of 2018.
- Steakhouse FinancialcoreSteakhouse Financial serves as an external third-party signer required to authorize large transactions and changes to the Transaction Approval Policy (TAP), protecting users from collusion between executives or directors.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Mountain Protocol competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Paxos: Paxos issues regulated stablecoins (USDP, PAXG) and provides tokenization infrastructure for institutions. It overlaps with USDM in regulated stablecoin issuance, reserve management, and institutional API/treasury services.
- Circle (USYC): Circle, the issuer of USDC, has expanded into yield-bearing Treasury products (USYC) for institutional clients. It is a broad incumbent in fiat-backed stablecoins that competes with USDM across custody, regulatory positioning, and institutional distribution.
Others
- Fireblocks: Fireblocks provides enterprise MPC custody infrastructure that Mountain Protocol used to secure USDM reserves. It is a key enabling vendor and adjacent infrastructure provider in the institutional stablecoin ecosystem.
- Anchorage Digital: Anchorage Digital is a federally chartered crypto bank and digital asset custodian that acquired Mountain Protocol in 2025. It is directly relevant as the strategic acquirer integrating Mountain Protocol's BMA license and stablecoin technology into its institutional offering.
Direct peers
- Sky (formerly MakerDAO): Sky/MakerDAO offers sDAI and the DSR savings rate, embedding yield directly into a dollar-pegged token held in DeFi wallets. It competes with USDM for the same DeFi-native, yield-bearing stablecoin use case at substantially greater scale.
- Ondo Finance: Ondo Finance issues tokenized US Treasury products (USYC, USDY) targeted at institutional and DeFi users. It is the closest direct competitor to USDM in the yield-bearing, Treasury-backed stablecoin category, with significantly larger scale and broader distribution.
- Ethena: Ethena issues USDe, a yield-bearing synthetic dollar that distributes returns to holders via a rebasing-like mechanism. It targets institutional and DeFi participants seeking treasury-style yield on a USD-pegged asset, directly overlapping with USDM's value proposition.
Emerging players
- Maple Finance: Maple Finance offers syrupUSDC and other yield-bearing stablecoin wrappers in DeFi. It targets institutional credit allocation and DeFi composability, partially overlapping with USDM's treasury-yield passthrough model.
- Resolv Labs: Resolv issues USR, a delta-neutral yield-bearing stablecoin distributed to DeFi users. It is an emerging competitor in the on-chain yield-bearing dollar space, with a similar institutional DeFi target audience.
- OpenEden: OpenEden issues TBILL, a tokenized US T-Bill product for institutional and DeFi users. It is a comparable emerging player in the yield-bearing, Treasury-backed stablecoin category targeting the same institutional DeFi segment as USDM.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Mountain Protocol social profiles
Digital presenceMountain Protocol compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
Mountain Protocol financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Mountain Protocol leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Mountain Protocol subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Mountain Protocol funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Mountain Protocol M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Mountain Protocol
What does Mountain Protocol do?
Mountain Protocol issues USDM, a rebasing ERC20 stablecoin fully backed by US Treasury bonds, designed to pass through the underlying Treasury yield to holders. The company operated as a Bermuda-regulated Digital Asset Business and subsequently was acquired by Anchorage Digital, after which it entered wind-down.
Is Mountain Protocol a public or private company?
Mountain Protocol is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently closed.
When was Mountain Protocol founded?
Mountain Protocol was founded in 2023. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Mountain Protocol based?
Mountain Protocol is headquartered in Pembroke, United States, in the North America region.
How does Mountain Protocol make money?
One revenue line is on record: yield Spread on US Treasury Holdings.
Who are Mountain Protocol's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Paxos and Circle (USYC). Others are Fireblocks and Anchorage Digital. Direct peers are Sky (formerly MakerDAO), Ondo Finance and Ethena. Emerging players are Maple Finance, Resolv Labs and OpenEden.
Does Mountain Protocol have an API?
Yes. The API allows Primary Users to deposit and withdraw USDM and USDC in/out of their Mountain Protocol account, query account balance measured in USDM, and consult immediate availability of USDC liquidity for traders. Access to API documentation and API keys requires contact via [email protected] or Account Executive.
What industry is Mountain Protocol in?
Mountain Protocol's product category is Stablecoin Issuance. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGAMAD, On-Chain Payments & Stablecoin Infrastructure (Issuance, Rails, Treasury), with a secondary code of FSAPAEAB, Stablecoins & On-Chain Money (fiat-backed, crypto-backed, algorithmic; issuance/redemption). Its NAICS code is 52321 and its SIC code is 6211.