Uniswap's Earn product goes live with three Morpho vaults curated by Gauntlet, a structure the DEX's own blog post left unnamed. The risk steward selected USDC Prime, USDT Prime, and WETH Prime as the sole destinations for user deposits, each governed by custom allocation caps and exposure limits that Gauntlet controls onchain.
How the vault routing works
When a user deposits USDC, USDT, or WETH through the Earn interface, the funds flow directly into the corresponding Morpho Prime vault. Gauntlet's vault managers then allocate that liquidity across Morpho's lending markets according to risk parameters they update via onchain governance actions. The Prime vaults use a single-kink interest rate model optimized for stablecoin and ETH lending, with utilization targets calibrated to keep rates competitive while preserving withdrawal liquidity. Uniswap's frontend abstracts the vault selection — users choose an asset, not a vault — but the smart contracts enforce the three-vault mapping at the protocol layer.
DeFi Llama data shows Morpho's total value locked crossed $2.1 billion in the week before launch, with Prime vaults accounting for roughly $840 million across Ethereum mainnet. Uniswap's interface adds a distribution channel that reaches the DEX's 4.2 million monthly active wallets, though initial deposit caps limit inflows to $50 million per vault during the first epoch. The caps reset after Gauntlet reviews utilization and risk metrics, a process scheduled for every 30 days.
Gauntlet's mandate includes setting supply caps per collateral asset, configuring liquidation loan-to-value ratios, and adjusting the interest rate curve kinks. The firm can pause deposits or withdrawals through a timelocked admin function, a control surface that Uniswap does not replicate in its own contracts. Smart contract risk concentrates in Morpho's core — audited by Trail of Bits and OpenZeppelin — and in Gauntlet's vault controller, which has not undergone a formal audit but operates within Morpho's permissioned vault framework. Governance risk arises if Gauntlet's multi-sig signers disagree on parameter changes; the timelock imposes a 48-hour delay before any adjustment executes.
What to watch in the next governance cycle
The first 30-day review will test whether deposit velocity justifies raising the $50 million per-vault caps. Gauntlet has signaled it may add a fourth vault for yield-bearing stablecoins such as sUSDe or USDe if demand materializes. Uniswap's governance forum shows a temperature-check proposal to share a portion of vault yield with UNI stakers, though no onchain vote has been scheduled. Traders should monitor Morpho utilization rates — sustained levels above 85% would trigger rate curve steepening, reducing net APY for Earn depositors.