cTokens

Introduction

Each asset supported by the Compound Protocol is integrated through a cToken contract, which is an EIP-20 compliant representation of balances supplied to the protocol. By minting cTokens, users (1) earn interest through the cToken’s exchange rate, which increases in value relative to the underlying asset, and (2) gain the ability to use cTokens as collateral.

cTokens are the primary means of interacting with the Compound Protocol; when a user mints, redeems, borrows, repays a borrow, liquidates a borrow, or transfers cTokens, she will do so using the cToken contract.

There are currently two types of cTokens: CErc20 and CEther. Though both types expose the EIP-20 interface, CErc20 wraps an underlying ERC-20 asset, while CEther simply wraps Ether itself. As such, the core functions which involve transferring an asset into the protocol have slightly different interfaces depending on the type, each of which is shown below.

Mint

The mint function transfers an asset into the protocol, which begins accumulating interest based on the current Supply Rate for the asset. The user receives a quantity of cTokens equal to the underlying tokens supplied, divided by the current Exchange Rate.

CErc20

function mint(uint mintAmount) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account which shall supply the asset, and own the minted cTokens.
  • mintAmount: The amount of the asset to be supplied, in units of the underlying asset.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code Before supplying an asset, users must first approve the cToken to access their token balance.

CEther

function mint() payable
  • msg.value: The amount of ether to be supplied, in wei.
  • msg.sender: The account which shall supply the ether, and own the minted cTokens.
  • RETURN: No return, reverts on error.

Solidity

Erc20 underlying = Erc20(0xToken...);     // get a handle for the underlying asset contract
CErc20 cToken = CErc20(0x3FDA...);        // get a handle for the corresponding cToken contract
underlying.approve(address(cToken), 100); // approve the transfer
assert(cToken.mint(100) == 0);            // mint the cTokens and assert there is no error

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
await cToken.methods.mint().send({from: myAccount, value: 50});

Redeem

The redeem function converts a specified quantity of cTokens into the underlying asset, and returns them to the user. The amount of underlying tokens received is equal to the quantity of cTokens redeemed, multiplied by the current Exchange Rate. The amount redeemed must be less than the user’s Account Liquidity and the market’s available liquidity.

CErc20 / CEther

function redeem(uint redeemTokens) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account to which redeemed funds shall be transferred.
  • redeemTokens: The number of cTokens to be redeemed.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
require(cToken.redeem(7) == 0, "something went wrong");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
cToken.methods.redeem(1).send({from: ...});

Redeem Underlying

The redeem underlying function converts cTokens into a specified quantity of the underlying asset, and returns them to the user. The amount of cTokens redeemed is equal to the quantity of underlying tokens received, divided by the current Exchange Rate. The amount redeemed must be less than the user’s Account Liquidity and the market’s available liquidity.

CErc20 / CEther

function redeemUnderlying(uint redeemAmount) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account to which redeemed funds shall be transferred.
  • redeemAmount: The amount of underlying to be redeemed.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
require(cToken.redeemUnderlying(50) == 0, "something went wrong");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
cToken.methods.redeemUnderlying(10).send({from: ...});

Borrow

The borrow function transfers an asset from the protocol to the user, and creates a borrow balance which begins accumulating interest based on the Borrow Rate for the asset. The amount borrowed must be less than the user’s Account Liquidity and the market’s available liquidity. To borrow Ether, the borrower must be ‘payable’ (solidity).

CErc20 / CEther

function borrow(uint borrowAmount) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account to which borrowed funds shall be transferred.
  • borrowAmount : The amount of the underlying asset to be borrowed.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CErc20(0x3FDA...);
require(cToken.borrow(100) == 0, "got collateral?");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
await cToken.methods.borrow(50).send({from: 0xMyAccount});

Repay Borrow

The repay function transfers an asset into the protocol, reducing the user’s borrow balance.

CErc20

function repayBorrow(uint repayAmount) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account which borrowed the asset, and shall repay the borrow.
  • repayAmount: The amount of the underlying borrowed asset to be repaid. A value of -1 (i.e. 2^256 - 1) can be used to repay the full amount.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code Before repaying an asset, users must first approve the cToken to access their token balance.

CEther

function repayBorrow() payable
  • msg.value: The amount of ether to be repaid, in wei.
  • msg.sender: The account which borrowed the asset, and shall repay the borrow.
  • RETURN: No return, reverts on error.

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
require(cToken.repayBorrow.value(100)() == 0, "transfer approved?");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
cToken.methods.repayBorrow(10000).send({from: ...});

Repay Borrow Behalf

The repay function transfers an asset into the protocol, reducing the target user’s borrow balance.

CErc20

function repayBorrowBehalf(address borrower, uint repayAmount) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account which shall repay the borrow.
  • borrower: The account which borrowed the asset to be repaid.
  • repayAmount: The amount of the underlying borrowed asset to be repaid. A value of -1 (i.e. 2^256 - 1) can be used to repay the full amount.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code Before repaying an asset, users must first approve the cToken to access their token balance.

CEther

function repayBorrowBehalf(address borrower) payable
  • msg.value: The amount of ether to be repaid, in wei.
  • msg.sender: The account which shall repay the borrow.
  • borrower: The account which borrowed the asset to be repaid.
  • RETURN: No return, reverts on error.

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
require(cToken.repayBorrowBehalf.value(100)(0xBorrower) == 0, "transfer approved?");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
await cToken.methods.repayBorrowBehalf(0xBorrower, 10000).send({from: 0xPayer});

Transfer

Transfer is an ERC-20 method that allows accounts to send tokens to other Ethereum addresses. A cToken transfer will fail if the account has entered that cToken market and the transfer would have put the account into a state of negative liquidity.

CErc20 / CEther

function transfer(address recipient, uint256 amount) returns (bool)
  • recipient: The transfer recipient address.
  • amount: The amount of cTokens to transfer.
  • RETURN: Returns a boolean value indicating whether or not the operation succeeded.

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
cToken.transfer(0xABCD..., 100000000000);

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
await cToken.methods.transfer(0xABCD..., 100000000000).send({from: 0xSender});

Liquidate Borrow

A user who has negative account liquidity is subject to liquidation by other users of the protocol to return his/her account liquidity back to positive (i.e. above the collateral requirement). When a liquidation occurs, a liquidator may repay some or all of an outstanding borrow on behalf of a borrower and in return receive a discounted amount of collateral held by the borrower; this discount is defined as the liquidation incentive. A liquidator may close up to a certain fixed percentage (i.e. close factor) of any individual outstanding borrow of the underwater account. Unlike in v1, liquidators must interact with each cToken contract in which they wish to repay a borrow and seize another asset as collateral. When collateral is seized, the liquidator is transferred cTokens, which they may redeem the same as if they had supplied the asset themselves. Users must approve each cToken contract before calling liquidate (i.e. on the borrowed asset which they are repaying), as they are transferring funds into the contract.

CErc20

function liquidateBorrow(address borrower, uint amount, address collateral) returns (uint)
  • msg.sender: The account which shall liquidate the borrower by repaying their debt and seizing their collateral.
  • borrower: The account with negative account liquidity that shall be liquidated.
  • repayAmount: The amount of the borrowed asset to be repaid and converted into collateral, specified in units of the underlying borrowed asset.
  • cTokenCollateral: The address of the cToken currently held as collateral by a borrower, that the liquidator shall seize.
  • RETURN: 0 on success, otherwise an Error code Before supplying an asset, users must first approve the cToken to access their token balance.

CEther

function liquidateBorrow(address borrower, address cTokenCollateral) payable
  • msg.value: The amount of ether to be repaid and converted into collateral, in wei.
  • msg.sender: The account which shall liquidate the borrower by repaying their debt and seizing their collateral.
  • borrower: The account with negative account liquidity that shall be liquidated.
  • cTokenCollateral: The address of the cToken currently held as collateral by a borrower, that the liquidator shall seize.
  • RETURN: No return, reverts on error.

Solidity

CEther cToken = CEther(0x3FDB...);
CErc20 cTokenCollateral = CErc20(0x3FDA...);
require(cToken.liquidateBorrow.value(100)(0xBorrower, cTokenCollateral) == 0, "borrower underwater??");

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CErc20.at(0x3FDA...);
const cTokenCollateral = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
await cToken.methods.liquidateBorrow(0xBorrower, 33, cTokenCollateral).send({from: 0xLiquidator});

Key Events

Event Description
Mint(address minter, uint mintAmount, uint mintTokens) Emitted upon a successful Mint.
Redeem(address redeemer, uint redeemAmount, uint redeemTokens) Emitted upon a successful Redeem.
Borrow(address borrower, uint borrowAmount, uint accountBorrows, uint totalBorrows) Emitted upon a successful Borrow.
RepayBorrow(address payer, address borrower, uint repayAmount, uint accountBorrows, uint totalBorrows) Emitted upon a successful Repay Borrow.
LiquidateBorrow(address liquidator, address borrower, uint repayAmount, address cTokenCollateral, uint seizeTokens) Emitted upon a successful Liquidate Borrow.

Error Codes

Code Name Description
0 NO_ERROR Not a failure.
1 UNAUTHORIZED The sender is not authorized to perform this action.
2 BAD_INPUT An invalid argument was supplied by the caller.
3 COMPTROLLER_REJECTION The action would violate the comptroller policy.
4 COMPTROLLER_CALCULATION_ERROR An internal calculation has failed in the comptroller.
5 INTEREST_RATE_MODEL_ERROR The interest rate model returned an invalid value.
6 INVALID_ACCOUNT_PAIR The specified combination of accounts is invalid.
7 INVALID_CLOSE_AMOUNT_REQUESTED The amount to liquidate is invalid.
8 INVALID_COLLATERAL_FACTOR The collateral factor is invalid.
9 MATH_ERROR A math calculation error occurred.
10 MARKET_NOT_FRESH Interest has not been properly accrued.
11 MARKET_NOT_LISTED The market is not currently listed by its comptroller.
12 TOKEN_INSUFFICIENT_ALLOWANCE ERC-20 contract must allow Money Market contract to call transferFrom. The current allowance is either 0 or less than the requested supply, repayBorrow or liquidate amount.
13 TOKEN_INSUFFICIENT_BALANCE Caller does not have sufficient balance in the ERC-20 contract to complete the desired action.
14 TOKEN_INSUFFICIENT_CASH The market does not have a sufficient cash balance to complete the transaction. You may attempt this transaction again later.
15 TOKEN_TRANSFER_IN_FAILED Failure in ERC-20 when transfering token into the market.
16 TOKEN_TRANSFER_OUT_FAILED Failure in ERC-20 when transfering token out of the market.

Failure Info

Code Name
0 ACCEPT_ADMIN_PENDING_ADMIN_CHECK
1 ACCRUE_INTEREST_ACCUMULATED_INTEREST_CALCULATION_FAILED
2 ACCRUE_INTEREST_BORROW_RATE_CALCULATION_FAILED
3 ACCRUE_INTEREST_NEW_BORROW_INDEX_CALCULATION_FAILED
4 ACCRUE_INTEREST_NEW_TOTAL_BORROWS_CALCULATION_FAILED
5 ACCRUE_INTEREST_NEW_TOTAL_RESERVES_CALCULATION_FAILED
6 ACCRUE_INTEREST_SIMPLE_INTEREST_FACTOR_CALCULATION_FAILED
7 BORROW_ACCUMULATED_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
8 BORROW_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
9 BORROW_CASH_NOT_AVAILABLE
10 BORROW_FRESHNESS_CHECK
11 BORROW_NEW_TOTAL_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
12 BORROW_NEW_ACCOUNT_BORROW_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
13 BORROW_MARKET_NOT_LISTED
14 BORROW_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
15 LIQUIDATE_ACCRUE_BORROW_INTEREST_FAILED
16 LIQUIDATE_ACCRUE_COLLATERAL_INTEREST_FAILED
17 LIQUIDATE_COLLATERAL_FRESHNESS_CHECK
18 LIQUIDATE_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
19 LIQUIDATE_COMPTROLLER_CALCULATE_AMOUNT_SEIZE_FAILED
20 LIQUIDATE_CLOSE_AMOUNT_IS_UINT_MAX
21 LIQUIDATE_CLOSE_AMOUNT_IS_ZERO
22 LIQUIDATE_FRESHNESS_CHECK
23 LIQUIDATE_LIQUIDATOR_IS_BORROWER
24 LIQUIDATE_REPAY_BORROW_FRESH_FAILED
25 LIQUIDATE_SEIZE_BALANCE_INCREMENT_FAILED
26 LIQUIDATE_SEIZE_BALANCE_DECREMENT_FAILED
27 LIQUIDATE_SEIZE_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
28 LIQUIDATE_SEIZE_LIQUIDATOR_IS_BORROWER
29 LIQUIDATE_SEIZE_TOO_MUCH
30 MINT_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
31 MINT_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
32 MINT_EXCHANGE_CALCULATION_FAILED
33 MINT_EXCHANGE_RATE_READ_FAILED
34 MINT_FRESHNESS_CHECK
35 MINT_NEW_ACCOUNT_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
36 MINT_NEW_TOTAL_SUPPLY_CALCULATION_FAILED
37 MINT_TRANSFER_IN_FAILED
38 MINT_TRANSFER_IN_NOT_POSSIBLE
39 REDEEM_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
40 REDEEM_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
41 REDEEM_EXCHANGE_TOKENS_CALCULATION_FAILED
42 REDEEM_EXCHANGE_AMOUNT_CALCULATION_FAILED
43 REDEEM_EXCHANGE_RATE_READ_FAILED
44 REDEEM_FRESHNESS_CHECK
45 REDEEM_NEW_ACCOUNT_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
46 REDEEM_NEW_TOTAL_SUPPLY_CALCULATION_FAILED
47 REDEEM_TRANSFER_OUT_NOT_POSSIBLE
48 REDUCE_RESERVES_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
49 REDUCE_RESERVES_ADMIN_CHECK
50 REDUCE_RESERVES_CASH_NOT_AVAILABLE
51 REDUCE_RESERVES_FRESH_CHECK
52 REDUCE_RESERVES_VALIDATION
53 REPAY_BEHALF_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
54 REPAY_BORROW_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
55 REPAY_BORROW_ACCUMULATED_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
56 REPAY_BORROW_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
57 REPAY_BORROW_FRESHNESS_CHECK
58 REPAY_BORROW_NEW_ACCOUNT_BORROW_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
59 REPAY_BORROW_NEW_TOTAL_BALANCE_CALCULATION_FAILED
60 REPAY_BORROW_TRANSFER_IN_NOT_POSSIBLE
61 SET_COLLATERAL_FACTOR_OWNER_CHECK
62 SET_COLLATERAL_FACTOR_VALIDATION
63 SET_COMPTROLLER_OWNER_CHECK
64 SET_INTEREST_RATE_MODEL_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
65 SET_INTEREST_RATE_MODEL_FRESH_CHECK
66 SET_INTEREST_RATE_MODEL_OWNER_CHECK
67 SET_MAX_ASSETS_OWNER_CHECK
68 SET_ORACLE_MARKET_NOT_LISTED
69 SET_PENDING_ADMIN_OWNER_CHECK
70 SET_RESERVE_FACTOR_ACCRUE_INTEREST_FAILED
71 SET_RESERVE_FACTOR_ADMIN_CHECK
72 SET_RESERVE_FACTOR_FRESH_CHECK
73 SET_RESERVE_FACTOR_BOUNDS_CHECK
74 TRANSFER_COMPTROLLER_REJECTION
75 TRANSFER_NOT_ALLOWED
76 TRANSFER_NOT_ENOUGH
77 TRANSFER_TOO_MUCH

Exchange Rate

Each cToken is convertible into an ever increasing quantity of the underlying asset, as interest accrues in the market. The exchange rate between a cToken and the underlying asset is equal to:

exchangeRate = (getCash() + totalBorrows() - totalReserves()) / totalSupply()

CErc20 / CEther

function exchangeRateCurrent() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The current exchange rate as an unsigned integer, scaled by 1 * 10^(18 - 8 + Underlying Token Decimals).

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint exchangeRateMantissa = cToken.exchangeRateCurrent();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const exchangeRate = (await cToken.methods.exchangeRateCurrent().call()) / 1e18;

Tip: note the use of call vs. send to invoke the function from off-chain without incurring gas costs.

Get Cash

Cash is the amount of underlying balance owned by this cToken contract. One may query the total amount of cash currently available to this market.

CErc20 / CEther

function getCash() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The quantity of underlying asset owned by the contract.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint cash = cToken.getCash();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const cash = (await cToken.methods.getCash().call());

Total Borrows

Total Borrows is the amount of underlying currently loaned out by the market, and the amount upon which interest is accumulated to suppliers of the market.

CErc20 / CEther

function totalBorrowsCurrent() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The total amount of borrowed underlying, with interest.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint borrows = cToken.totalBorrowsCurrent();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const borrows = (await cToken.methods.totalBorrowsCurrent().call());

Borrow Balance

A user who borrows assets from the protocol is subject to accumulated interest based on the current borrow rate. Interest is accumulated every block and integrations may use this function to obtain the current value of a user’s borrow balance with interest.

CErc20 / CEther

function borrowBalanceCurrent(address account) returns (uint)
  • account: The account which borrowed the assets.
  • RETURN: The user’s current borrow balance (with interest) in units of the underlying asset.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint borrows = cToken.borrowBalanceCurrent(msg.caller);

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const borrows = await cToken.methods.borrowBalanceCurrent(account).call();

Borrow Rate

At any point in time one may query the contract to get the current borrow rate per block.

CErc20 / CEther

function borrowRatePerBlock() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The current borrow rate as an unsigned integer, scaled by 1e18.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint borrowRateMantissa = cToken.borrowRatePerBlock();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const borrowRate = (await cToken.methods.borrowRatePerBlock().call()) / 1e18;

Total Supply

Total Supply is the number of tokens currently in circulation in this cToken market. It is part of the EIP-20 interface of the cToken contract.

CErc20 / CEther

function totalSupply() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The total number of tokens in circulation for the market.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint tokens = cToken.totalSupply();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const tokens = (await cToken.methods.totalSupply().call());

Underlying Balance

The user’s underlying balance, representing their assets in the protocol, is equal to the user’s cToken balance multiplied by the Exchange Rate.

CErc20 / CEther

function balanceOfUnderlying(address account) returns (uint)
  • account: The account to get the underlying balance of.
  • RETURN: The amount of underlying currently owned by the account.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint tokens = cToken.balanceOfUnderlying(msg.caller);

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const tokens = await cToken.methods.balanceOfUnderlying(account).call();

Supply Rate

At any point in time one may query the contract to get the current supply rate per block. The supply rate is derived from the borrow rate, reserve factor and the amount of total borrows.

CErc20 / CEther

function supplyRatePerBlock() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The current supply rate as an unsigned integer, scaled by 1e18.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint supplyRateMantissa = cToken.supplyRatePerBlock();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const supplyRate = (await cToken.methods.supplyRatePerBlock().call()) / 1e18;

Total Reserves

Reserves are an accounting entry in each cToken contract that represents a portion of historical interest set aside as cash which can be withdrawn or transferred through the protocol’s governance. A small portion of borrower interest accrues into the protocol, determined by the reserve factor.

CErc20 / CEther

function totalReserves() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The total amount of reserves held in the market.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint reserves = cToken.totalReserves();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const reserves = (await cToken.methods.totalReserves().call());

Reserve Factor

The reserve factor defines the portion of borrower interest that is converted into reserves.

CErc20 / CEther

function reserveFactorMantissa() returns (uint)
  • RETURN: The current reserve factor as an unsigned integer, scaled by 1e18.

Solidity

CErc20 cToken = CToken(0x3FDA...);
uint reserveFactorMantissa = cToken.reserveFactorMantissa();

Web3 1.0

const cToken = CEther.at(0x3FDB...);
const reserveFactor = (await cToken.methods.reserveFactorMantissa().call()) / 1e18;