Ethena Launches USDtb Stablecoin with $65 Million TVL on First Day
On Monday, Ethena Labs launched the USDtb stablecoin in collaboration with Securitize and supported by BlackRock's BUIDL platform. The stablecoin achieved $65 million in total-value-locked (TVL) on its first day.
USDtb operates similarly to Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC), backed by cash or cash equivalents on a 1:1 basis. This design supports holders of Ethena’s USDe during market volatility. Ethena stated:
“Ethena will be able to close the hedging positions underlying USDe and re-allocate its backing assets to USDtb to further ameliorate related risks.”
José Maria Macedo, co-founder of Delphi Labs, predicts USDtb will become the largest tokenized treasury product within a month of launch. Seraphim Czecker, Ethena’s head of growth, believes USDtb could scale to $100 billion and noted the firm's efficient capital allocation in bearish markets while establishing an APY "floor" tied to the T-bill rate.
BlackRock's USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund provides 90% backing for USDtb, with the remaining 10% from stablecoins like USDC to ensure liquidity during weekends or when U.S. Treasury bill markets are unavailable.
USDtb Stablecoin to Further Boost Growth of the Ethena Ecosystem
In October, USDtb's core smart contracts passed audits by Pashov, Quantstamp, and Cyfrin, finding no significant issues. The stablecoin was approved by Ethena’s risk committee in late September, with final details confirmed earlier this month.
This launch follows Ethena's USDe surpassing Dai to become the third-largest stablecoin, with a market cap of $5.87 billion compared to USDT’s $140.6 billion and USDC’s $42.1 billion, according to DefiLlama data.
Ethena's ecosystem has seen significant growth, with its price experiencing over 100% gains monthly. As of press time, ENA trades at $1.15, with a market cap of $3.41 billion and TVL exceeding $6 billion.