Series: Crypto Pay Day (Personal/Results)
What this is: Real position updates, weekly earnings (in percentages), and strategy decisions. This is the “what I’m actually doing” companion to the technical Deep Dive posts.
For technical explanation: See DeFi Deep Dive: Aerodrome Finance for how concentrated liquidity and ve(3,3) mechanics work.
Week Summary: Nov 1-7, 2025
Period: 7 days (Friday Nov 1 - Thursday Nov 7) Strategy: USDC/AERO Concentrated Liquidity on Base Major Events: Pendle position unlocked and exited, capital redeployed to Aerodrome
Position Breakdown
Starting the Week (Nov 4-6)
Two concentrated positions running:
Position 1 (Deposit #30779449) - Tighter Range:
- Range: 0.9681 - 1.4442 AERO
- Staked: 13,438 USDC + 11,493 AERO
- APR: 52.29% → 88.68% (APR increased!)
- Daily emissions: ~45 AERO
- Status: In range, performing well
Position 2 (Deposit #30876779) - Wider Range:
- Range: 0.7926 - 1.7639 AERO
- Staked: 2,946 USDC + 2,941 AERO
- APR: 26.14% → 44.34% (APR increased!)
- Daily emissions: ~10 AERO
- Status: In range, defensive coverage
Total Weekly Emissions: ~385 AERO (55 AERO/day × 7 days)
Major Event: Pendle Position Exit
Thursday, Nov 6 - Pendle unlock date:
Original Pendle Position:
- Initial investment: ~$8,000 (locked ~3 months)
- Exit value: 4,689 USDC
- PENDLE price: Crashed during lock period
- Loss: ~$3,311 (~41% loss)
- Lesson: Token price risk in locked positions
Why the loss?:
- PENDLE token price crashed while locked
- Position value denominated in PENDLE
- No ability to exit early
- Awaiting Nov 15 rewards - hoping emissions offset some losses
Decision: Exit entire position, redeploy to Aerodrome USDC/AERO concentrated liquidity.
Mid-Week Position Change (Nov 7-8)
Friday, Nov 8 - Consolidated to single concentrated position:
Rationale:
- Two positions = split liquidity = lower individual APRs
- Pool growing rapidly ($1.47M → $1.84M TVL)
- Single concentrated position = better capital efficiency
New Combined Position (Deposit #31085395):
- Range: 0.7926 - 1.4442 AERO (30% range)
- Staked: 15,453 USDC + 14,069 AERO
- Deposited Value: ~$29,052
- APR: 203.14% 🚀
- Daily emissions: ~100 AERO target
- Pool TVL: $1,469,638
Result: Significantly higher APR (203% vs previous ~82% blended)
End of Week Rebalance (Nov 9-10)
Sunday Nov 9: Capital Addition
Added to position:
- Increased stake to 19,699 USDC + 9,802 AERO
- New deposited value: ~$29,885
- APR: 94.68% (actual based on emissions)
- Daily yield:
76 AERO ($77.52 at $1.02 AERO) - Pool grew: $1.84M total TVL
Strategy: USDC-heavy rebalance to capture more of the range.
Sunday Nov 10: Tighter Range
Pool grew dramatically: $1.84M → $3.45M TVL
Problem identified:
- Displayed APR: 39.91%
- Actual APR based on emissions: ~75%
- Discrepancy between displayed vs actual returns
Rebalancing decision:
- Pulled ~$2,568 out of main position
- Created tighter 20% range position
- Supplied 5,597 AERO (~$6,034) to Moonwell lending
New Concentrated Position (Deposit #31299716):
- Range: 0.7926 - 1.1825 AERO (20% range - tighter!)
- Staked: 16,878 USDC + 10,079 AERO
- Deposited Value: ~$27,827
- APR: 54.81% (displayed)
- Pool TVL: $3,665,271
- Wallet: 5,597 AERO liquid (~$6,157)
New Position: Moonwell Lending:
- Supplied: 5,597 AERO (~$6,034)
- Platform: Moonwell (lending protocol on Base)
- Expected returns: Interest from borrowers + WELL token rewards
- Liquidity: Can withdraw anytime (no lockup)
- Rationale: Productive yield on idle AERO
Weekly Earnings Breakdown
Total AERO claimed this week: ~430 AERO
Daily breakdown:
- Nov 4: ~61 AERO
- Nov 5: ~22.6 AERO (moved from basic to concentrated pool)
- Nov 6: ~61 AERO
- Nov 7: ~95 AERO
- Nov 8: ~104 AERO (92.24 + 11.36)
- Nov 9: ~76 AERO
- Nov 10: ~57 AERO (post-rebalance to tighter range)
Average AERO price: $0.82 - $1.50 (volatile week) Average weekly value: ~$430 USD (at ~$1.00 avg AERO price)
On ~$29,000 deployed capital:
- Weekly earnings: $430
- Weekly return: 1.48%
- Annualized: ~77% APR
Strategy Notes
What Worked This Week
✅ Consolidating positions
- Two small positions → one large = much higher APR
- 203% APR spike after consolidation
✅ Watching actual emissions vs displayed APR
- Displayed: 39.91%
- Actual (calculated): ~75%
- Important to track real daily yields, not just interface numbers
✅ Exiting Pendle on unlock
- Got out of losing position
- Redeployed to productive Aerodrome yields
- Nov 15 rewards may offset some losses
✅ Diversifying into Moonwell
- Idle AERO now earning (lending interest + WELL rewards)
- Can recall instantly if needed for LP
What Didn’t Work
❌ Pendle locked position
- 41% loss from token price crash
- No exit option during lock period
- Lesson: Be very careful with locked positions in volatile tokens
❌ Range confusion on Nov 5
- Thought I set range at $0.69, ended up at $0.797
- Aerodrome interface can be glitchy
- Going forward: Screenshot ranges before/after to verify
⚠️ Tighter range = more management
- 20% range captures more fees but requires active monitoring
- Set TradingView alert at $0.79 (bottom of range)
- If AERO drops below range, position stops earning
Active Management Required
Current position requires monitoring:
- AERO price: $0.82 (barely in 20% range: $0.79 - $1.18)
- Alert set at $0.79
- If price drops below range = 0 emissions
- May need to widen range on next rebalance if too much babysitting
Trade-off:
- Tighter range = higher APR (more fees per dollar)
- Wider range = lower APR but less stress
Pool Growth Analysis
Week’s TVL progression:
- Monday: ~$1.47M
- Wednesday: ~$1.84M
- Sunday: ~$3.67M
148% TVL growth in one week!
Impact on APR:
- More liquidity = emissions spread across more people
- Individual APR decreases as pool grows
- But total fee volume also increased (more trading)
- Net: APRs stayed relatively strong despite TVL 2.5x increase
Lessons Learned
1. Track Actual Emissions, Not Displayed APR
- Aerodrome sometimes shows inaccurate APRs
- Calculate: (Daily AERO × 365) / Position Value = Actual APR
- My actual: ~75% vs displayed 39.91%
2. Pool Growth Matters
- Rapidly growing pools = diluted individual APR
- Monitor TVL trends weekly
- Consider exiting if TVL 5-10x and APR crashes
3. Concentrated Liquidity Requires Active Management
- 20-30% ranges need daily price monitoring
- Wider ranges (50-100%) = less stress, lower APR
- Choose based on time availability
4. Don’t Lock Volatile Tokens
- Pendle loss was 41% because PENDLE price crashed
- Could not exit during lock period
- Only lock if:
- Token is relatively stable
- You’re extremely bullish long-term
- Can afford total loss
5. Diversify Yield Sources
- Aerodrome concentrated LP (high yield, active)
- Moonwell lending (passive, lower yield, safe)
- Spreads risk across protocols and strategies
Next Week Outlook
Monitoring:
- AERO price vs 20% range ($0.79 - $1.18)
- Daily emissions consistency at ~54.81% APR
- Moonwell AERO lending returns
- Nov 15: Pendle rewards distribution (hoping for offset)
Potential adjustments:
- If AERO drops below $0.79: Widen range or rebalance
- If Moonwell returns are weak: Convert back to LP
- If pool TVL continues exploding: Consider rotating to newer pools
Capital allocation:
- $27,827: Aerodrome USDC/AERO concentrated LP
- $6,034: Moonwell AERO lending
- Total deployed: ~$33,861
Target weekly yield: $350-450 (~1.2-1.5% weekly)
How to Calculate Your Results
If you replicated this strategy with different capital:
Example: $10,000 deployed
Concentrated LP (similar 20% range):
- Expected APR: 50-75% (varies with pool growth)
- Weekly return: ~1% of capital
- Your weekly earnings: $100
Risk factors:
- AERO price volatility (affects position value)
- Range management (goes out of range = 0 earnings)
- Pool TVL dilution (APR drops as pool grows)
- Impermanent loss (AERO vs USDC price changes)
Annualized projection (if APR holds):
- $10,000 × 60% APR = $6,000/year
- Monthly: ~$500
- Weekly: ~$115
Compounding Projection
If you reinvest all AERO emissions at 60% APY:
| Period | Value (% of start) |
|---|---|
| Starting capital | 100% |
| After 1 month | 105% |
| After 3 months | 115% |
| After 6 months | 131% |
| After 12 months | 182% |
Example on $10,000:
- Start: $10,000
- After 1 year: $18,200 (with full compounding at 60% APY)
Disclaimer
Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.
DeFi involves significant risks:
- Smart contract risk (Aerodrome, Moonwell exploits possible)
- Impermanent loss (AERO price vs USDC)
- Range management (concentrated liquidity goes out of range)
- Protocol risks (Base chain issues, Coinbase dependencies)
- Potential total loss of capital
This is my personal experience, not financial advice. Always:
- Do your own research
- Understand the mechanisms
- Never invest more than you can afford to lose
- Start small to learn before scaling
Next Crypto Pay Day
Coming up:
- Crypto Pay Day: Aerodrome - Week of Nov 11-17, 2025
- Crypto Pay Day: Pendle - November 2025 (monthly distribution on Nov 15)
For technical deep-dives on how these protocols work:
Tags: #crypto-payday #aerodrome #defi #base #income-report #concentrated-liquidity #position-update