Ethena has expanded its USDe stablecoin basis-trade strategy to include tokenized stocks through a partnership with Binance, marking the first venue to support this equity-perpetuals expansion. Allocations began today, according to an announcement from Ethena.
The strategy pairs long spot exposure in Binance bStocks with short positions in USDT-denominated equity perpetuals, creating a delta-neutral setup that allows Ethena to earn funding-rate yield without taking directional price risk. This is the same structural approach Ethena has used with crypto assets since launch.
Binance is also offering Ethena's delta-neutral accounts lower auto-deleveraging (ADL) priority, which reduces the risk of forced position closures during volatile market conditions and adds a layer of protection for USDe holders exposed to this collateral.
Market Opportunity and Performance
According to Ethena, Binance's equity basis has averaged more than 11% annualized yield over the past six months. Open interest in that market has grown roughly 30% per month over the last three months, the firm said.
Ethena frames the expansion as significantly widening its potential collateral base from $2.5 trillion in crypto assets to more than $150 trillion in real-world assets. The firm expects the equity perpetuals opportunity to exceed the $15 billion of crypto perpetuals market share it previously captured.
Implications for USDe Holders
For USDe holders, the expansion means the stablecoin's yield generation no longer depends solely on crypto funding rates. Tying yield to equity basis trades introduces a new, less crypto-correlated income stream and ties USDe's stability more directly to Binance's equity perpetuals infrastructure and risk controls.
