Buy Compound (COMP) Online: Cards, Bank Transfer, Apple & Google Pay

What is Compound (COMP)?

Compound (COMP) is the governance token of Compound, a decentralized lending protocol that launched on Ethereum and later expanded to other networks. The protocol lets you supply crypto assets into shared pools to earn interest, or borrow against collateral you deposit, with rates set by smart contracts rather than a bank. COMP is an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, and holders can vote on protocol changes or delegate their votes; creating a proposal requires a large amount of delegated COMP.

The detail below covers how Compound’s lending pools actually work, what COMP does as a governance token, and the risks that come with both. Compound has changed between versions, so the mechanics differ depending on which version of the protocol you are supplying assets to.

Compound (COMP) at a glance

• TickerCOMP
• TypeGovernance token
• NetworkEthereum (ERC-20)
• GovernsCompound lending protocol
• Total supply10 million COMP, fixed
• Built byCompound Labs
• Compound Labs foundersRobert Leshner, Geoffrey Hayes

How the Compound protocol works

• Compound runs on liquidity pools managed by smart contracts, with borrow and supply rates moving algorithmically as pool use rises and falls.
• In Compound v2, supplying an asset returns a cToken whose balance stays constant while its redemption value in the underlying asset rises as interest accrues.
• Compound III works differently: interest is earned on the base asset, while assets posted as collateral earn none at all.
• Borrowers must post more collateral than they take out, and a position can be liquidated if that collateral falls too low.

What the COMP token actually does

• COMP is an ERC-20 token on Ethereum that gives holders a say in how the Compound protocol changes.
• Holders can vote directly or delegate their votes, but creating a proposal requires a large amount of delegated COMP.
• COMP’s total supply is fixed at 10 million tokens, with allocations to protocol users, Compound Labs shareholders, and founders and team members under vesting schedules.
• Governance sets the rate at which COMP reaches users, and it has reduced that rate to zero in some markets.
• Holding COMP does not earn lending interest by itself: interest goes to users who supply assets to the Compound protocol.

Risks to know before you buy COMP

• The protocol runs on smart contract code, and code can contain bugs, so funds placed in any DeFi protocol are never risk free.
• COMP’s price is volatile: it can fall as well as rise, and you can lose the full amount you put in.
• Voting power follows token holdings, so large holders carry more weight in Compound governance than smaller ones do.
• DeFi lending faces evolving regulation in many countries, and rules on buying and holding crypto differ by jurisdiction and can change.
• Nothing here is investment, financial, legal, or tax advice.

How do I buy Compound (COMP)?

You can buy Compound (COMP) on Coinmama with a credit card, debit card, bank transfer over SEPA or SWIFT, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. Payment options and coin availability vary by country. Verify your account once, choose the amount you want, and provide an Ethereum wallet address you control – your COMP is sent straight to that address rather than held for you. Support is available 24/7 at support@coinmama.com.

Compound is one of many cryptocurrencies you can buy on Coinmama. If you want to hold the asset the Compound protocol is built on, you can also buy Ethereum, or start with Bitcoin. Other options include Litecoin, Ethereum Classic, and Dogecoin, each running on its own network, so match your receiving wallet to the coin you buy.