Ethena Labs, the synthetic stablecoin protocol, has announced its integration with centralized exchange wallets of major platforms like Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Bitget as of April 10. This move aims to incentivize users to lock up their USDe stablecoins for at least 7 days through exchange Web3 wallets, offering them a 20% reward boost.
We are excited to announce our integration with exchange wallets
The integrated wallets are:@Web3WithBinance@Bybit_Official@okxweb3@BitgetWallet
Users locking USDe for at least 7 days through exchange Web3 wallets are eligible for a 20% reward boost starting today pic.twitter.com/kUJOLiKeKM
— Ethena Labs (@ethena_labs) April 10, 2024
Developers at Ethena Labs stated that users participating in this initiative would receive incentives in the form of “Ethena sats,” convertible to the protocol’s native ENA token at the conclusion of each campaign. To earn sats, users must deposit Ethena USDe stablecoins into their exchange wallets, connect to the Ethena decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, and stake their holdings.
Currently, the protocol boasts a total value locked of $2.274 billion, generating an annualized revenue of $178 million, according to DeFiLlama. The ecosystem rewards have garnered significant attention and usage, with the top 10 wallets withdrawing a total of 37.5 million ENA ($51 million) and staking them since the beginning of Ethena Staking Season 2, as reported by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain.
Ethena gained recognition in the crypto space after offering a high annual percentage yield (APY) of 67% on its USDe stablecoin within a month of its launch on March 8. Despite concerns over its high yield, Guy Young, the founder of Ethena Labs, emphasized the sustainability and organic nature of the yields, refuting comparisons to failed stablecoin projects like TerraUSD (UST). Young highlighted that Ethena’s yields are derived from various sources, including Ethereum consensus layer rewards, execution fees, maximal extractable value fee captures, and trading income provided by Ethena Labs.
The protocol’s approach involves opening short derivative positions when receiving long-position collateral assets for minting USDe, with the resulting spread paid out to USDe holders as yield. This transparent mechanism aims to ensure the credibility and sustainability of Ethena’s yield offerings.
