# Mint

## Overview

**Minting USDh** is the process of creating new stablecoins, while **redeeming USDh** is the process of exchanging these stablecoins for USDC or USDT.

## How USDh is Created

USDh is minted directly through Hermetica. It is issued on Bitcoin Layer 1 through Runes and Bitcoin Layer 2 through Stacks.

Any registered business or individual in an approved jurisdiction who has completed Hermetica's KYC and AML processes can mint USDh by depositing USDC or USDT.

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Other users can purchase USDh through open DeFi markets without completing KYC/KYB.
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## Infrastructure

<figure><img src="/files/IdSzN79HdycMWcI8Qayp" alt=""><figcaption><p>Overall Process of USDh</p></figcaption></figure>

All Bitcoin in the protocol is held at institutional-grade custodians [Copper](https://copper.co/) and [Ceffu](https://www.ceffu.com/).

Their off-exchange settlement (OES) solutions allow Hermetica to mirror funds onto the centralized exchanges trading venues, while holding our assets in a bankruptcy remote Trust off of the exchange's balance sheet.

Hermetica trades on the 4 biggest centralized futures exchanges which represent a total of over $20B in BTCUSD perp open interest. These exchanges are:

1. [Binance](https://www.binance.com)
2. [ByBit](https://www.bybit.com)
3. [Bitget](https://www.bitget.com/)
4. [OKX](https://www.okx.com)

The short perpetual futures position delta-hedges the BTC in the protocol and locks in the dollar value, which is in turn represented on-chain as USDh.

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While we currently use the exchanges listed above, we are always exploring new exchange partners to further diversify our dependencies.
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For more information about our use of institutional custodians and OES providers, please refer to the [Security Mechanisms section](/usdh/how-it-works/security.md).
{% endhint %}

## Redemptions

Approved Participants may redeem USDh for USDC or USDT via a redemption process that mirrors the minting flow in reverse.

Redemptions may be temporarily paused if one or more of the following conditions are met:

1. **Derivative venue disruption:** Material downtime, halted trading, or impaired settlement on the venues used for hedging that prevents safe unwind or rebalance.
2. **Liquidity dislocation:** Bid–ask spreads or available depth deteriorate to a level where forced unwinds would cause outsized slippage and realized losses for remaining holders.
3. **Collateral or oracle integrity issues:** Loss of reliable price feeds or custody-layer issues that prevent accurate valuation.
4. **Extreme volatility events:** Volatility spikes that cause margin requirements or execution risk to exceed predefined safety thresholds.
5. **Smart contract or security incidents:** Any credible exploit, vulnerability, or abnormal behavior requiring containment.


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