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Gauntlet

Risk Curators

Gauntlet is a DeFi vault-curation platform that uses the Aera Protocol infrastructure to build and manage institutional-grade, risk-optimized vaults. These vaults automate strategy execution, enforce exposure limits, and deliver sustainable, auditable yields across chains.

Risk Rating
Good
Protocol Code Quality
Protocol Maturity
Protocol Design
What is Gauntlet?
What we like
Gauntlet provides access to professional-grade yield strategies via on-chain vaults that are non-custodial and transparent. Their vaults operate across chains and protocols, giving users diversified exposure without needing to manage all the moving parts themselves.
What we like less
The strategies are complex in nature, multi-protocol, multi-chain, and reliant on vetted curators and risk frameworks. That means users need to trust the team and infrastructure more than in simpler DeFi protocols. Also, performance depends on underlying yield markets, so it’s not purely a “set-and-forget” yield.
What it means for you
If you’re looking for yield on stablecoins or other “real-world style” vaults and are comfortable with a bit of complexity, Gauntlet can be a strong option. For newcomers wanting purely simple DeFi yield, it may feel more advanced and worth a deeper look.
Information
Exploit/Hacks
Unknown
Info
Key Metrics
Risk Assessment
Good
Protocol Code Quality
  • Code reviewed by several experienced auditors; Spearbit and OpenZeppelin
  • Public team promotes accountability
  • No documented protocol hacks since launch
Protocol Maturity
  • Latest protocol version launched in 2025; maturity less than six months increases technical risk as smart contracts are less battle-tested
  • Top 1% by total value locked reduces risk
  • Core contracts are fully immutable
  • No timelock exists or no information documented, which mean a malicious actor could approve upgrades without any delay
  • No governance token and/or contracts are fully immutable
Protocol Design
  • This protocol is susceptible to risks related to yield optimizers which deploy custom strategies to automatically manage user funds
Things to know about Gauntlet

What is Gauntlet?

Gauntlet is a firm that builds and curates on-chain vaults operated on the Aera Protocol and Morpho infrastructure. Its flagship vault, Gauntlet USD Alpha (gtUSDa), focuses on stablecoin yield across chains. Gauntlet also creates “Prime/Core/Frontier” vault-categories in Morpho where liquidity providers earn interest from isolated lending markets selected by Gauntlet curators.

How Gauntlet makes money

Gauntlet earns by charging management fees on vaults, and by setting supply caps and fee structures within curated vaults. The strategy allows institutions or retail users to deposit into vaults with the expectation of yield after fees and risk-adjustments.

How does Gauntlet’s strategy work through Aera and Morpho?

Gauntlet’s strategy operates on top of two complementary infrastructures: Aera and Morpho. Through Aera, Gauntlet builds non-custodial vaults that automatically deploy, rebalance, and manage user deposits across different DeFi protocols and blockchains. Aera acts as the foundation layer that executes these allocations transparently on-chain, allowing Gauntlet to focus on risk-adjusted performance while keeping users in control of their funds.

On the other hand, Morpho provides the lending engine where Gauntlet functions as a Vault Curator. This means Gauntlet decides how and where funds within each vault are allocated across isolated lending markets to capture optimized yield. The combination of Aera’s automation with Morpho’s structured lending system lets Gauntlet deliver a dynamic, cross-chain yield strategy that balances efficiency, transparency, and security without relying on unsustainable token incentives.