Back above a debt ratio of 9% and racing towards 10%

It's actually not the first day the debt ratio has been above 9%. Currently it stands at 9.430% according to SteemWorld.org.

But it is a more 'remarkable' day, because the blockchain started to print STEEM again, and payouts include once more, a mix of STEEM, SBD and SP.

At the rate the debt ratio is growing, this won't hold for long, and we will be back to the scenario with only STEEM and SP as payout rewards pretty soon, once the debt ratio hits 10%.

We don't really accumulate much more debt in such a short time, but the dip of STEEM's price after the pump is putting pressure on the debt ratio. When the price of STEEM was rapidly growing the debt ratio was quickly going down, and now, in reverse, when the price is dipping, the debt ratio is racing back up.

It isn't really something unexpected, the recent price movements being easily predictable.

After the 10% debt ratio, a so called 'haircut' rule kicks in, one that was already active not so long ago.

What does this 'haircut' rule means?

Well, since there are enough people unfamiliar with the inner workings of the Steem blockchain, I'll start with the beginning.

SBD (STEEM Blockchain Dollars) has the property to be convertible to $1 worth of STEEM. This is not the same as trading it on the internal or external market for STEEM. That's a different thing.

Learn more about when, how, and where to perform SBD conversions.

Back to the 'haircut' rule. That means that instead of receiving $1 worth of STEEM for 1 SBD, you will get less. The higher the debt ratio above 10%, the less you get if you convert.

I've seen people keeping SBD in the hope of another pump like in December. That will be a long wait, if it ever materializes again. Or to have a more stable liquid token than STEEM, and that, in the context of the Steem blockchain alone is probably ok. I'm not telling you what to do, but converting on a short-term downtrend with SBD way below 1$ and the debt ratio still below 10% can be a good deal too, and can be done when the market is low, as opposed to when it is at a peak.