# Curation Vaults

Curation is how lender capital gets allocated across Fira's floating rate markets. Lenders deposit assets into curated vaults. A designated curator decides where that capital goes — which markets, what allocation, under what constraints. Depositors earn yield passively. Curators earn fees for their oversight.

## Curators

A curator manages one or more vaults with the objective of optimizing risk-adjusted returns for depositors. The role is strategic, not operational:

| Responsibility            | Description                                                                                                |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Strategy definition**   | Establishing the vault's mandate — which assets, markets, and strategies are eligible                      |
| **Risk framework**        | Setting exposure caps, concentration limits, and risk constraints                                          |
| **Allocator appointment** | Designating who executes portfolio adjustments within the strategy. The curator may also act as allocator. |
| **Vault parameters**      | Defining fee structures, access controls, and compliance requirements                                      |

Curator-initiated changes are subject to a **timelock**. Depositors have time to review proposed changes and withdraw if they disagree.

## How Vaults Work

1. **Depositor** provides assets (e.g., USDC) to a curated vault
2. **Curator** defines the allocation strategy across eligible markets
3. **Allocator** executes capital deployment according to the strategy
4. **Yield** accrues from multiple sources — trading fees, fixed-rate spreads, floating-rate interest, rehypothecation
5. **Depositor** can withdraw at any time, subject to available liquidity

The vault issues shares representing the depositor's proportional claim on the total assets under management.

## Related

* [Floating-Rate Markets](https://docs.fira.money/protocol/floating-rate-markets) — Variable-rate lending
* [Whitepaper](https://docs.fira.money/resources/whitepaper) — Complete description