Ethena Expands Delta-Neutral Backing Beyond Crypto
Ethena, the protocol behind the USDe synthetic dollar, is expanding its delta-neutral backing strategy beyond crypto into equity perpetual futures. The market for equity perps has quietly amassed over $6 billion in open interest.
The core bet is straightforward: equity perps now carry high funding rates, and the total addressable market for equities dwarfs crypto. Ethena expects equity perpetuals to surpass crypto as the primary yield source backing USDe within 12 to 24 months.
Ethena's original model was elegant in its simplicity. It held spot crypto, shorted the equivalent in perpetual futures, and pocketed the funding rate. The spread between spot and futures prices generated the yield that backed USDe. The extension into equity perps applies the same delta-neutral framework to synthetic versions of stocks and commodities.