Risk Curators · Review
Active9Summits Review 2026: Non-Custodial Risk Curator Vaults
9Summits is an on-chain risk curator that runs non-custodial vaults on Lagoon and manages vaults and lending markets for clients. Its pitch is capital preservation first, with about $20M in TVL across four chains.
By the DappsAtlas editorial team · Updated
DappsAtlas score
7.0/10
Good
Our verdict on 9Summits
7.0/109Summits suits DeFi users who want exposure to lending and yield strategies without managing positions themselves, and teams that need a curator to run a vault. Its main strengths are non-custodial vaults, clear published fees and a stated capital-preservation approach. The main caveat is that returns depend on third-party protocols and curator decisions, and no audits are listed for 9Summits itself. Yields are variable and capital can be lost.
Score breakdown
How 9Summits scores
- Security
- 6.5/10
- Ease of use
- 7.5/10
- Fees
- 6.5/10
- Features
- 7.0/10
Scores run from 0 to 10 and are based only on facts we could verify. Where information was missing we mark the score n/a rather than guess.
What is 9Summits?
9Summits is an on-chain risk curator. It runs its own flagship vaults on Lagoon and manages vaults and lending markets for treasuries, protocols and asset managers. Its stated principle is to protect capital first and compound returns second.
The homepage says the founders have been active in crypto since 2016 and began managing capital on-chain in September 2020. DefiLlama lists the project with roughly $20M in TVL across Ethereum, Avalanche, Base and Unichain, and it has been listed since May 2025. The homepage shows about $18.9M across the four flagship vaults.
The flagship vaults cover cbBTC, ETH, USDC and EURC. The cbBTC vault is co-curated with Tulipa Capital. 9Summits has no token and no audits listed for itself.
How 9Summits works
9Summits acts as a curator. It picks the protocols and positions that a vault allocates to, such as lending markets and yield venues, and adjusts them over time. The vaults are built on Lagoon, a vault platform, so depositors hold a share of a vault contract rather than managing positions themselves.
For each allocation the team says it reads the contracts, studies how the yield is generated, and tracks exposure continuously. The flagship USDC vault, for example, spreads USDC across lending and yield protocols on Ethereum, while the ETH vault combines staking and DeFi yield and stays liquid.
Beyond its own vaults, 9Summits builds and runs vaults for outside clients and creates lending markets on isolated protocols such as Morpho, Euler and Silo. Returns come from the underlying DeFi yield, minus the vault's performance fee where one applies.
6 features
Key features
01
Flagship vaults
Four flagship vaults on Lagoon cover cbBTC, ETH, USDC and EURC, open to any depositor.
02
Non-custodial deposits
Users deposit directly into the vault contract. The homepage states 9Summits does not take custody of funds.
03
Client vault management
The team builds and runs vaults for treasuries, protocols and asset managers on Lagoon, Morpho, Euler and Silo.
04
Lending market creation
It structures and launches lending markets on isolated protocols, covering collateral, oracles, rates and liquidation parameters.
05
Protocol due diligence
Contracts are read before every allocation, yield sources are analysed, and exposures are monitored continuously.
06
Co-curated BTC strategy
The cbBTC strategy is co-curated with Tulipa Capital across blue-chip DeFi venues.
Pros and cons
What we like
- Non-custodial: deposits go directly into the vault contract and 9Summits does not take custody
- Flagship vaults span BTC, ETH, USDC and EURC, including a euro stablecoin option
- Fee terms and net APR figures are shown for each flagship vault
- The team reports managing capital on-chain since 2020, through several market cycles
- Also offers vault management and lending market design for external clients
- Stated focus on protocol-level due diligence and continuous monitoring
Watch out for
- No audits are listed for 9Summits itself; users rely on the audits of Lagoon and the underlying protocols
- Yields are variable and not guaranteed, and the homepage warns of possible total loss of capital
- Flagship vaults charge a 20% performance fee on the cbBTC, ETH and USDC strategies
- Team members and legal entity are not named on the homepage
- Total value locked is modest, at roughly $20M across all vaults
- The cbBTC vault's 3.63% net APR since inception is low compared with stablecoin strategies
9Summits fees
The homepage lists a 20% performance fee and 0% management fee on the cbBTC, ETH and USDC flagship vaults. The EURC flagship vault shows 0% performance and 0% management fees.
Network gas costs and any fees charged by Lagoon or the underlying protocols are not detailed on the homepage. Users can see current terms on each vault page before depositing. Client mandate pricing is not published.
Is 9Summits safe?
9Summits says it does not take custody of user funds. Each strategy links to the underlying protocol, where users interact directly at their own risk. That removes custodian risk but leaves smart-contract risk in Lagoon and every protocol a vault allocates to, plus curator judgement risk.
No audits are listed for 9Summits, and the homepage does not name team members or a legal entity. It carries a disclaimer that it is not investment advice, that DeFi can lead to total loss of capital and that yields are not guaranteed. No incidents are reported.
7 steps
How to get started with 9Summits
- 1
Review the flagship vaults on the 9Summits site and pick the asset you want to hold: cbBTC, ETH, USDC or EURC.
- 2
Open the vault on Lagoon and read its strategy, fees and current net APR.
- 3
Check the underlying protocols the vault allocates to and decide whether you accept those risks.
- 4
Connect a compatible wallet and make sure you hold the vault's asset plus ETH for gas.
- 5
Deposit directly into the vault contract and confirm the transaction.
- 6
Monitor the vault's performance and exit terms, and withdraw through the vault when you choose.
- 7
Protocols or treasuries wanting managed vaults can contact the team by email.
Who 9Summits is for
The flagship vaults suit DeFi users who hold cbBTC, ETH, USDC or EURC and want a curator to manage allocations across lending and yield protocols. The client service suits treasuries, protocols and asset managers that need vaults or isolated lending markets built and run for them. Users should be comfortable with smart-contract risk.
9Summits FAQs
What is a risk curator in DeFi?
A risk curator selects and manages how vault funds are allocated across DeFi lending and yield protocols. It does due diligence on those protocols, sets allocations and monitors exposure. Depositors hand these decisions to the curator while keeping funds in a vault contract.
Does 9Summits hold my funds?
No. The homepage states that 9Summits does not take custody of user funds. You deposit directly into a vault contract on Lagoon and interact with the underlying protocols at your own risk.
Which vaults does 9Summits offer?
The flagship vaults are cbBTC, ETH, USDC and EURC strategies. The cbBTC vault is co-curated with Tulipa Capital. The USDC vault allocates across lending and yield protocols on Ethereum, and the EURC vault is a euro-denominated stablecoin strategy.
What fees do the 9Summits vaults charge?
The homepage lists a 20% performance fee and no management fee on the cbBTC, ETH and USDC flagship vaults. The EURC flagship vault shows 0% performance and 0% management fees. Always check the vault page before depositing, as terms can change.
What returns have the vaults shown?
The homepage shows net APRs since inception of 3.63% for cbBTC, 6.19% for ETH, 10.71% for USDC and 3.10% for EURC. It also says yields are variable and not guaranteed, and past performance does not predict future results.
Can a protocol or treasury hire 9Summits?
Yes. The homepage says it builds and operates vaults for treasuries, protocols and asset managers on Lagoon, Morpho, Euler and Silo. It also structures lending markets, including collateral, oracle and liquidation parameters. Interested parties contact the team by email.
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How we checked
Sources
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