GHO (GHO): What It Is, Uses and Risks

GHO is a US dollar-pegged stablecoin tied to the Aave ecosystem. Unlike fiat-backed coins such as USDC, it is not issued against bank deposits. Users mint it by borrowing against crypto collateral they have supplied to Aave, which makes it a crypto-backed, overcollateralized stablecoin. Each GHO in circulation is meant to be covered by more than one dollar of collateral sitting in the protocol.

The token is governed by the Aave DAO, the community of AAVE token holders who vote on protocol changes. Governance decides things like the borrow rate for minting GHO, how much of it can be created by each source, and which collateral and facilitators are allowed. The aim is a stablecoin whose rules and revenue are controlled on-chain rather than by a single company.

Our site files GHO under stablecoins, and some data providers also tag it as both crypto-backed and fiat-backed because Aave's collateral pool can include a mix of assets. The target value is one US dollar. As of 2026-11-05 it traded at about $0.9986, a small discount to the peg, which is typical for a stablecoin that is supported by market mechanisms instead of a direct redemption desk.

GHO works as a dollar-denominated unit of account and a medium of exchange inside decentralized finance. Because it is an ERC-20 style token, it can be sent between wallets, swapped on decentralized exchanges, and supplied to lending or liquidity pools, like other stablecoins.

The main use is as a borrowable asset on Aave. Someone who holds ETH or another accepted asset can deposit it as collateral and borrow GHO instead of selling the collateral. That gives them dollar-priced liquidity while keeping exposure to the deposited asset, with the risk that the collateral can be liquidated if its value falls too far.

GHO is also designed so that the interest paid by minters flows to the Aave DAO treasury, rather than to outside lenders. That is a key difference from borrowing a stablecoin that was already supplied by other depositors. Holders may also find it in liquidity pools and DeFi strategies on several networks. the public information available to us do not list further utilities, so treat any additional yield programs as separate products with their own terms.

GHO has no fixed maximum supply. New tokens are created when users borrow, or when an approved facilitator mints within a cap set by governance, and tokens are burned as loans are repaid. Supply therefore expands and contracts with demand to borrow.

As of 2026-11-05, data showed about 699 million GHO in circulation, equal to the total supply, with no stated maximum. At a price near one dollar, that gives a market capitalization of roughly $698 million and a fully diluted value of the same size, which put GHO around rank 87 by market cap. Reported 24-hour trading volume was about $5.6 million, which is low compared with the amount outstanding, since much of the supply sits in lending positions and pools rather than trading daily.

Because it is a stablecoin, there is no inflation schedule, staking emission or token unlock timetable to follow. The numbers that matter are the borrow rate, the amount of collateral behind it, and the supply cap for each minting source. Those parameters can change by DAO vote, so check the current governance settings instead of relying on older descriptions.

GHO started on Ethereum and is now listed as issued on several networks: Ethereum, Base, Ink, Gnosis Chain (xDai), Plasma, Arbitrum, Avalanche and Monad. Not every version is minted the same way. Minting against collateral is tied to Aave markets, while versions on other chains are generally created by moving GHO across through cross-chain infrastructure approved by governance. Always confirm which bridge or route is the official one before moving funds.

In general terms, holders keep GHO in a self-custody wallet that supports the relevant network, or on an exchange that lists it. It can be traded through decentralized exchange pools, and some centralized exchanges also list it, though availability varies by region and platform. Because trading volume is modest relative to supply, large swaps can move the price more than they would for the biggest stablecoins.

You need the native gas token of each chain, such as ETH on Ethereum, Base and Arbitrum, to pay fees when moving GHO. Check the contract address on the correct chain, since fake tokens with the same name exist across the DeFi ecosystem.

GHO was introduced by the Aave community as a native stablecoin, with the initial release on Ethereum in 2023. The launch followed a governance process in which AAVE holders approved the framework, including the idea of facilitators that can mint GHO under set limits. Our dataset does not list an exact launch date, so we leave it there.

Price history shows how tightly it has stayed near the dollar after some early turbulence. The recorded all-time low was about $0.917 on 2023-10-23, a few months after launch, when the peg was still being established. The all-time high was about $1.03 on 2024-02-28. Over the 12 months to 2026-11-05, the price moved only about 0.04 percent lower, and about 0.03 percent higher over seven days, which is close to flat.

Over time, governance expanded GHO to more networks, which is why the list of chains is now longer than a single Ethereum-only token. We have no verified record of major hacks or depegs beyond the early price dip, but readers should check current community and governance channels for recent changes.

The first risk is peg risk. GHO has no guaranteed redemption at one dollar from the issuer. Its stability relies on collateral, liquidations, borrowing demand and market arbitrage, so it can trade slightly above or below the target, and a sharp market shock could widen that gap.

Second is collateral and liquidation risk. If the value of collateral falls quickly, positions can be liquidated. Bad debt can appear if liquidations fail, for example during extreme volatility or oracle problems, and that could weigh on confidence in GHO.

Third is smart contract risk. GHO and Aave rely on code that can contain bugs, even after audits. Cross-chain versions add bridge and messaging risk on top of that, since a flaw in the transfer system could affect the tokens on a given network.

Fourth is governance risk. Parameters, supply caps and facilitators can be changed by DAO vote, so the rules are not fixed. Concentrated voting power or a poorly considered proposal could alter the token's behavior.

Finally, liquidity is thinner than for the largest stablecoins, and regulation of stablecoins and DeFi is changing in many jurisdictions. None of this is investment advice.

Store GHO in a wallet where you control the keys. A hardware wallet paired with a well-known software interface is a common choice for larger balances, while a software wallet can suit small amounts. Write the recovery phrase on paper or metal, keep it offline, and never type it into a website or share it with anyone, including people claiming to be support staff.

Before sending, check that you are using the right network. GHO on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base and the other chains are separate token deployments, and sending to an unsupported address or network can lose funds. Verify the contract address from the official Aave documentation instead of copying it from a search result or social post, and send a small test transaction first.

Be careful with token approvals. When you connect a wallet to a dApp, you may grant it permission to spend your GHO, and you can review and revoke old approvals with a reputable approvals tool. If you borrow GHO against collateral, monitor your health factor so a price drop does not trigger liquidation, and keep some spare gas token for repayment or emergency actions.