USDC pays nothing on its own, and the law in the US, where its issuer is based, keeps it that way. The interest people talk about comes from lending, and it has its own rules and risks.
Yes, but only by lending it out, never from the issuer. On Aave on Base, USDC lending paid 3.93% a year on September 24, 2026, a variable rate that has ranged from about 2.3% to 13% in the past year. It carries no deposit insurance, plus smart contract, peg and US-dollar currency risk.
Not financial advice.
Yes, you can, but not from the company that makes the coin. USDC is a digital US dollar issued by Circle, and holding it earns nothing on its own. Any interest you see comes from lending it to someone who pays to borrow it, either through a platform's lending program or through an on-chain lending market such as Aave.
That split is on purpose. Circle is a US company, and the US GENIUS Act already stops stablecoin issuers from paying interest. In January, Decrypt reported that a Senate draft of the next crypto bill would stretch that ban to platforms that pay people simply for holding a stablecoin, while still allowing rewards tied to using one. Banks pushed for it, worried that savers would move deposits into dollar tokens.
Canada is building its own rules. It passed a Stablecoin Act in March as part of Bill C-15, and Cointelegraph reports that non-bank issuers will have to register with the Bank of Canada, back each coin one to one with liquid assets and redeem at par, with the framework expected to take effect in 2027.
Europe is having the same argument, one step further along. CoinDesk reported on September 22 that the European Central Bank wants the EU's existing ban on paying interest for stablecoins widened to cover indirect routes too, including crypto lending and staking. Nothing like that is proposed in Canada today, but it tells you where the pressure points are.
Aave is a lending protocol that runs as code on several blockchains, including Base. People who deposit USDC form a pool. Borrowers take USDC out of that pool and post other crypto as collateral, usually worth more than the loan. The interest they pay, minus a cut for the protocol, goes to the depositors.
The rate is not set by anyone. According to Aave's documentation, it follows how much of the pool is borrowed. Below a target level, the borrowing rate climbs gently as more is borrowed. Past that target it climbs steeply, which pulls in new deposits and pushes borrowers to repay. Lenders earn a share of what borrowers pay, so the lending rate rises and falls with demand. When traders want to borrow dollars to buy crypto, the rate goes up. When they stop, it drops.
There is more on who borrows and what can go wrong in our guide to Aave lending.
On September 24, 2026, USDC lending on Aave v3 on Base paid 3.93% a year, according to DefiLlama. It is a variable rate. The 30-day average was 3.66%, and over the past twelve months the daily figure ranged from about 2.3% to 13%. The spikes tend to arrive when crypto prices run and borrowing demand jumps, and they do not last.
For a Canadian reference point, the Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 2.25% on September 2, with its next decision on October 28.
| Rate | Level | Currency |
|---|---|---|
| Aave USDC on Base, today (variable) | 3.93% | US dollars |
| Aave USDC on Base, 30-day average | 3.66% | US dollars |
| Aave USDC on Base, 12-month range | about 2.3% to 13% | US dollars |
| Bank of Canada policy rate | 2.25% | Canadian dollars |
The comparison is not like for like, and that matters. One rate is on US dollars, the other on Canadian dollars. And US rates are moving: CoinDesk reported on September 24 that the US 10-year Treasury yield hit its highest level since 2007 while bitcoin slid to about US$83,300. Aave's rate does not follow the Fed directly, since it is set by borrowing inside the pool, so the two can drift apart for weeks at a time.
A 3.9% rate on dollars sounds calm. The risks behind it are of a different kind than a savings account's.
This part is general information, not tax advice. Interest is income, so expect to report whatever your USDC earns. Swapping one crypto asset for another, or converting back to Canadian dollars, is generally a disposition that can create a gain or loss. USDC adds a twist: because it tracks the US dollar, exchange-rate moves alone can produce a small gain or loss when you cash out. Keep a record of each deposit, withdrawal and interest payment, with the Canadian-dollar value on the day, and check with an accountant for your own situation.
We use exactly this setup, for a set period. Fonte vaults are each member's own smart account on Base, and in the current phase they sit 100% in Aave USDC lending, at 3.93% today, a variable rate. That phase ends on October 19, 2026, when the written cycle rule moves vaults into a BTC and ETH basket, so this is not a place to park dollars for the long run. Fonte never holds your money, you can withdraw to a Canadian bank by Interac e-Transfer any time, and the fee is 10% of profit above the previous high. See how a Fonte vault works.
No. Holding USDC earns nothing by itself. Circle is a US issuer, and the US GENIUS Act bars stablecoin issuers from paying interest to holders. Any interest you see on USDC comes from lending it to borrowers, through a platform or an on-chain lending market such as Aave.
On September 24, 2026, USDC lending on Aave v3 on Base paid 3.93% a year according to DefiLlama, with a 30-day average of 3.66%. The rate is variable. It moves with how much of the pool is borrowed, and over the previous twelve months it ranged from about 2.3% to 13%.
Generally you should expect to report it. Interest is income, and converting USDC to another crypto asset or back to Canadian dollars is usually a disposition that can create a gain or loss, including one caused only by the US dollar exchange rate. Keep records of every deposit, withdrawal and interest payment and ask an accountant about your situation.
Yes, in ways a savings account is not. There is no CDIC or other deposit insurance, the protocol is code that could fail, USDC could lose its peg to the US dollar, and the balance is in US dollars, so a stronger loonie lowers its value in Canadian terms. The rate also changes daily.
Disclaimer: This article is general information, not financial, investment, legal or tax advice. Crypto assets are volatile and you can lose money, including your entire deposit. Figures quoted from third parties are as reported by those sources on the date shown and can change. Smart contracts can contain flaws.
