# What is GHO? Aave’s stablecoin

GHO is a dollar-referenced stablecoin native to the Aave ecosystem. Its token uses approved facilitators that can mint and burn within governance-defined capacities. Borrowing against Aave collateral is one issuance route; stability modules add other mechanisms. GHO’s design target is a dollar peg, not a guaranteed secondary-market quote or a fixed return for holders.

Evidence: [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho); [GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho)

Canonical: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/what-is-gho/
Published: 2026-10-02
Substantively modified: 2026-10-02
Independently verified by an automated reviewer: 2026-10-02T19:26:58.461Z
Data current through: 2026-10-02

AI-assisted research and drafting with a separate automated source-verification pass; no external expert or named human review is implied.

## Key facts

- **Authority:** Approved facilitators mint and burn GHO within assigned capacities. ([GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho))
- **Borrowing:** Aave collateral can support a GHO borrowing position. ([GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho))
- **Interest:** Interest from the documented Aave minting route is directed to the DAO treasury. ([GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho))

## The token separates mint authority from a single market

A facilitator has a capacity and a current amount minted under that capacity. Governance controls who holds those roles and the allowed limits. This lets different approved mechanisms interact with the same token, but makes their rules important to understanding issuance.

A capacity of 10 million and a current level of 8 million would leave 2 million of headroom, using illustrative values. That headroom is a minting constraint, not a reserve balance or a promise that a user can borrow that amount.

Evidence: [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho)

## Your loan remains separate from your token balance

Borrowing GHO creates a debt position governed by its collateral and interest rules. Buying GHO on a market simply acquires the token. Holding GHO is not the same as supplying collateral or earning the interest paid by borrowers.

Avoid relying on a historical advertised borrowing rate. Governance and market configuration can change the rate or capacity relevant to a specific position.

Evidence: [GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho); [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho)

## Inspect the actual stability mechanism

The GHO Stability Module framework supports conversions with approved external assets under configurable rules. This differs from assuming every token holder has an unrestricted right to receive one bank dollar directly.

Read the module’s supported asset, capacity, price strategy and controls. Governance, collateral, oracle and liquidity assumptions still matter even when a user-facing screen rounds the token price to $1.

Evidence: [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho)

## Questions

### Does every GHO holder automatically earn Aave borrowing interest?

No. A token balance and participation in an interest-bearing product are different. The documented borrowing route sends interest to the DAO treasury; any holder reward or savings product has its own rules.

Evidence: [GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho); [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho)

## Claims and scope

### what-is-gho-quick-answer

GHO is a dollar-referenced stablecoin native to the Aave ecosystem. Its token uses approved facilitators that can mint and burn within governance-defined capacities. Borrowing against Aave collateral is one issuance route; stability modules add other mechanisms. GHO’s design target is a dollar peg, not a guaranteed secondary-market quote or a fixed return for holders.

Scope: {"collection":"stablecoins","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### what-is-gho-fact-authority

Authority: Approved facilitators mint and burn GHO within assigned capacities.

Scope: {"collection":"stablecoins","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### what-is-gho-fact-borrowing

Borrowing: Aave collateral can support a GHO borrowing position.

Scope: {"collection":"stablecoins","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### what-is-gho-fact-interest

Interest: Interest from the documented Aave minting route is directed to the DAO treasury.

Scope: {"collection":"stablecoins","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

## Sources

- [GHO protocol documentation](https://www.aave.com/docs/ecosystem/gho) — Aave. Governance-authorized mint/burn facilitators and mint caps, distinguished from user deposit interest. Locator: Facilitator model; bucket capacity; stability module. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:51:09.844Z.
- [GHO stablecoin](https://www.aave.com/help/gho-stablecoin/gho) — Aave. Collateral-backed issuance and borrowing interest directed to the DAO treasury. Locator: What is GHO?; how different. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:51:09.104Z.

## Revision history

- 2026-10-02: First publication after primary-source research and separate automated verification.

## Cite this entry

Degrees of Satoshi editorial project. “What is GHO? Aave’s stablecoin.” Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/what-is-gho/