Guides

Minting $YU on Yala Mainnet

Yala 🏔️

• 3 min read
Minting $YU on Yala Mainnet

Yala empowers Bitcoin holders to unlock the world of DeFi without giving up control of their BTC. At the center of this experience is $YU – the liquidity enabler backed by Bitcoin.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to mint $YU easily with BTC.

Mint $YU from Native BTC

Unlock on-chain liquidity from your BTC and access yield opportunities through Yala by MetaMinting $YU.

Deposit  BTC for YBTC, MetaMint $YU and Earn.

Step 1 – Deposit BTC to Receive YBTC

To begin, you’ll first convert your BTC into YBTC, a wrapped Bitcoin token on Ethereum used within the Yala protocol.

Click the YBTC button in the top-right corner.

Then:

  1. Go to the MetaMint $YU page.
  2. Enter how much BTC you’d like to deposit.
  3. Review the transaction fee (0.0003 BTC) and estimated confirmation time (~60 minutes, requiring 6 confirmations).
  4. Click Submit and approve the transaction in your Taproot-compatible BTC wallet.
  5. Once confirmed, your YBTC balance will appear on the destination chain (e.g., Ethereum).

Tip: Track your BTC deposit status under Portfolio → In and Out History. It may take 5–10 minutes for the entry to appear after confirmation.

Step 2 – Use YBTC to MetaMint

Now that you’ve received YBTC, it’s time to mint your $YU:

  1. On the MetaMint panel, enter the amount of YBTC you want to deposit.
  1. You can:
  • Use the Value tab to input exactly how much $YU you’d like to mint, or
  • Use the Percentage tab to adjust your Collateral Ratio.
  1. Make sure the vault meets the minimum threshold of 2,000 $YU, which includes a 200 $YU liquidation reserve.
  2. Click Create Vault.

Tip:  First-time users will need to approve YBTC spending. We recommend approving a higher cap to avoid repeated gas fees in future actions.

  1. Confirm the transaction in your destination chain wallet (e.g., MetaMask).
  2. Once complete, your $YU will appear in your wallet, and your vault will be visible on the Portfolio page.

Note: If Yala’s platform-wide Total Collateral Ratio drops below the Critical Collateral Ratio, new vault creation may be temporarily disabled to maintain system stability.

Don’t have BTC? No problem. If you already hold USDC on Ethereum, you can get $YU instantly – without any slippage via Convert.

Here’s how:

  1. Navigate to the Convert tab at app.yala.org.
  2. Connect your Ethereum wallet (e.g., MetaMask).
  3. Enter the amount of USDC you want to convert.
  4. Click Convert and confirm the transaction.
  5. Receive $YU directly in your wallet – 1:1 rate with zero slippage.

This option is perfect if you want to quickly access staking, farming, or other DeFi activities on Yala.

What’s Next After Minting $YU?

With $YU in hand, you’re now ready to explore everything Yala has to offer. Here’s how you can put it to work:

Mint your first $YU today at app.yala.org, and follow our guide at docs.yala.org if you need a hand.

Join the Yala Community

Yala is a native Bitcoin liquidity protocol that channels BTC into yield opportunities across DeFi and RWAs. 

Bitcoin holders unlock capital through self-custodial, liquidation-free borrowing by minting $YU, a BTC-backed liquidity asset. In this process, they pay a stability fee directly to $YU depositors, effectively exchanging BTC-backed exposure for portable, capital-efficient liquidity and access to yield without giving up ownership.

Yala’s SmartVault module manages system risk and ensures efficient yield distribution.

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