USDe supply is growing again. Can Ethena challenge the market position of USDT and USDC?

The stablecoin market is entering a new phase of competition. In the past few years, USDT and USDC have long dominated the market, building the most important dollar liquidity network in the global crypto market. However, with the development of on-chain finance, more and more projects are trying new digital dollar models, and Ethena is undoubtedly one of the most closely watched representatives.

After entering 2026, Ethena is once again becoming a market hotspot. According to data disclosed by the project, the supply of USDe has grown by more than 15% over the past 30 days, while the supply of USDtb has once again surpassed $1 billion, with monthly growth exceeding 70%. At the same time, Coinbase Ventures and global asset-management giant Janus Henderson have announced collaborations with Ethena in succession.

These changes have prompted the market to revisit a question: Does Ethena have the opportunity to challenge the market positions of USDT and USDC in the future?

Why USDe Supply Is Re-entering a Growth Cycle

For any stablecoin project, changes in supply are the most direct indicator.

Based on data recently disclosed by Ethena, the supply of USDe has grown by more than 15% over the past 30 days. At the same time, the protocol’s assets under management have once again approached $5 billion, indicating that market demand for USDe is picking up.

Unlike traditional stablecoins, USDe uses a “synthetic dollar” model. The protocol constructs a Delta Neutral strategy by hedging spot assets with perpetual contracts, thereby maintaining the dollar peg and providing holders with a source of yield. This mechanism gives USDe both stablecoin characteristics and yield-product characteristics. For users seeking dollar-denominated returns, USDe offers a value proposition that is different from USDT and USDC.

As market risk appetite gradually recovers and demand for on-chain yield increases, it is not surprising that USDe is re-entering a growth cycle.

USDtb Is Becoming Ethena’s New Growth Engine

Although most of the market attention has been on USDe, the fastest growth recently is actually in USDtb. According to data disclosed by Ethena, the supply of USDtb has once again surpassed $1 billion, growing by more than 70% over the past 30 days. This growth rate is clearly higher than the average for the entire stablecoin market.

The biggest difference between USDtb and USDe lies in the underlying asset structure. Compared with USDe, which relies more on derivatives-hedging mechanisms, USDtb uses U.S. Treasuries and real-world assets (RWA) as support, making it easier to win recognition from institutional investors.

For traditional financial institutions, RWA-backed digital dollars fit more naturally within existing risk-management frameworks. As more institutions enter the digital asset market, USDtb’s market space will continue to expand.

In a sense, USDtb is helping Ethena open the door to traditional financial markets.

Why Coinbase and Janus Henderson Chose Ethena

Over the past month, the biggest change for Ethena has come from institutional cooperation.

In early June, Coinbase Ventures announced an investment in Ethena and plans to bring Ethena products into the Coinbase ecosystem. According to publicly available information, Coinbase has more than 100 million users, meaning Ethena gains an important channel for user growth.

Subsequently, Janus Henderson, which manages approximately $4800 billion in assets under management, announced a strategic investment in ENA. It plans to use USDe for corporate treasury management, and also explore providing USDe-related services to customers through exchange products.

For the market, the signals released by these partnerships are more important than the investment amounts themselves. More and more traditional financial institutions have started to view Ethena as a digital dollar infrastructure, not just a DeFi project. This is also one of the biggest differences between Ethena and many stablecoin projects.

Why Ethena Is Trying to Move from Stablecoins to Institutional Finance

Ethena’s development direction is changing. At first, the market viewed Ethena as a high-yield stablecoin protocol. But judging from a recent series of actions, the project is expanding into the broader institutional finance market.

In addition to collaborating with Coinbase, Ethena is also working with institutions such as Anchorage to explore institutional lending and collateral-management business. At the same time, the project has begun participating in the RWA asset layout, including tokenized CLOs.

In the partnership between Janus Henderson and Ethena, it also involves bringing tokenized AAA-level CLO assets into the ecosystem. This means that in the future, Ethena may not only issue digital dollars, but also become an important channel for real-world assets to enter the blockchain.

If this strategy succeeds, Ethena’s competitors will no longer be just stablecoin issuers, but broader digital financial infrastructure platforms.

How Far Is USDe from Challenging USDT and USDC?

Despite obvious growth, USDe still has a considerable gap before it can truly challenge USDT and USDC.

At present, the total market cap of USDT remains above $1 billion. USDC also has tens of billions in circulating supply. By comparison, Ethena’s assets under management are approximately $5 billion, and it is still in a catch-up phase.

Meanwhile, USDT and USDC have already built mature payment networks, exchange liquidity, and enterprise-level use cases. This network effect cannot be replicated in the short term.

However, Ethena does not necessarily need to replicate USDT’s development path. Its core advantages lie in its yield capability, its native on-chain attributes, and its potential to integrate with the RWA market.

Therefore, a more likely future scenario is not USDe replacing USDT, but rather the formation of its own unique positioning in the institutional-grade yield dollar market.

Which Variables Will the Market Care Most About in the Future?

For Ethena, the most critical observation indicator going forward is still stablecoin scale growth.

Whether USDe and USDtb can continue to expand will directly determine protocol revenue and ecosystem value. At the same time, whether institutional capital continues to flow in is also an important basis for judging long-term trends.

In addition, changes in the regulatory environment are also worth paying attention to. As stablecoin regulatory frameworks in the United States and Europe are gradually improved, compliance capability may become an important factor in future competition.

The market is also watching whether Ethena’s RWA layout can be implemented. If more real-world assets enter the chain through Ethena, the protocol’s growth potential could far exceed that of traditional stablecoin projects.

Therefore, Ethena’s future competition is not only stablecoin competition, but also competition in digital financial infrastructure.

Summary

Over the past month, Ethena has received a dual boost from both supply growth and institutional partnerships.

USDe supply has grown by more than 15%, USDtb has broken through the $1 billion mark again, and institutions such as Coinbase Ventures and Janus Henderson have entered in succession—these changes all indicate that Ethena is gaining increasing market recognition.

Although USDe is still far from challenging USDT and USDC, Ethena’s development direction is no longer limited to stablecoins themselves. As institutional finance, RWA, and the digital dollar market continue to expand, Ethena is working to build a more complete digital financial ecosystem.

In the future, what is truly worth watching is not only whether USDe can continue to grow, but also whether Ethena can become an important bridge connecting traditional finance and on-chain finance.

FAQ

What is USDe?

USDe is a synthetic dollar stablecoin issued by Ethena, which maintains the dollar peg through a spot asset and derivatives hedging mechanism.

Why has USDe recently resumed growth?

According to data disclosed by Ethena, over the past 30 days the supply of USDe has grown by more than 15%, mainly benefiting from a rebound in demand for on-chain yield and being driven by institutional partnerships.

What is the difference between USDtb and USDe?

USDtb is mainly supported by U.S. Treasuries and real-world assets, while USDe uses a synthetic dollar mechanism; therefore, USDtb is more likely to gain recognition from institutional investors.

Why does Janus Henderson invest in Ethena?

Janus Henderson plans to use USDe for corporate treasury management and explore providing related digital asset services to clients through exchange products.

Can Ethena challenge USDT and USDC?

Currently, the scale of USDe is still clearly lower than that of USDT and USDC, but Ethena is seeking differentiated competitive advantages through institutional finance and the RWA market.

What is the most worth watching about Ethena in the future?

Investors can focus on the USDe and USDtb supply growth, the inflow of institutional funds, and progress in the expansion of the RWA business.