Andre Cronje teases algorithmic stablecoin on Sonic with projected 19%+ APY

The new stablecoin could be launched within the next five weeks, potentially based on a dynamic incentive system.

Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.

Sonic co-founder and lead architect Andre Cronje teased plans on March 25 to launch a new algorithmic stablecoin on the network within five weeks.

Cronje highlighted that the new stablecoin could offer over 19% in annual percentage yield at $1 billion total value locked (TVL).

He previously said on March 20:

“Pretty sure our team cracked algo stable coins today, but previous cycle gave me so much PTSD not sure if we should implement.”

Cronje referred to high-profile scandals involving algorithmic stablecoins like TerraUSD (UST), which collapsed and caused nearly $40 billion in losses for investors. The episode triggered widespread scrutiny of algorithmic models for stablecoins.

Despite initial hesitation, Cronje proceeded to share technical benchmarks. On March 22, he published a proof of concept (POC) indicating the stablecoin would yield over 200% APR at $10 million in TVL, decrease to approximately 23.5% at $100 million, and stabilize near 4.9% beyond $1 billion in TVL. 

On March 24, he reported optimization breakthroughs that significantly increased yield potential. He said in a post:

“Yohaan just found a way to turn this into 95.9% APY at $100m TVL, and 19.18% at $1bn+”

Cronje did not disclose specific details on the stablecoin’s algorithmic mechanics, collateral backing, or on-chain controls. However, the yield curve implies a variable-rate return system based on liquidity tiers.

Additionally, the yield model suggests a scalable incentive mechanism where early adopters are rewarded with higher returns, gradually normalizing as liquidity deepens. 

A $230 billion market

Sonic, a high-performance layer-1 network, is positioning itself as an execution environment optimized for financial applications.

According to Cronje, the network is tailored for high-throughput and low-latency operations, suggesting a stablecoin product could serve as a core component in its evolving ecosystem.

The stablecoin market recently surpassed $230 billion in total value, led by Tether’s USDT’s $145 billion market cap, followed by Circle’s USD Coin (USDC), which has a market cap of $58 billion.

Despite USDT’s dominance, new entrants are posing real competition in the sector, including Ethena Labs’ USDe, which registered outstanding growth over the past year.

USDe, which is also an algorithmic stablecoin, climbed from a $1.3 billion market cap to $5.4 billion within a year.

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