ENA holders eye potential yields over 5% as Ethena confirms fee switch thresholds met
Ethena mentioned it expects to activate the ENA fee switch, pending last implementation approval by its Risk Committee and a tokenholder vote, after the pre-set parameters had been met.
Those parameters, agreed in late 2024, require USDe provide above 6 billion, lifetime protocol income above 250 million, and USDe integration on 4 of the highest 5 centralized derivatives venues.
The Foundation plans to publish implementation particulars earlier than submitting a framework to ENA holders for affirmation through vote, per the group’s official communications.
Thresholds observe core protocol economics.
USDe income is pushed by futures funding and foundation, whereas sUSDe distributes a part of that to holders. In its newest month-to-month replace, Ethena reported USDe provide at 12.1 billion, a 30-day sUSDe APY of 8.54 p.c, a reserve fund of about 62 million consolidated into USDtb, and distribution progress with three of 5 high centralized exchanges built-in and two remaining.
The replace additionally flagged September Pendle principal token maturities and ongoing hedging on main venues. Per the Foundation’s August governance report, this stuff at the moment are tracked as activation inputs and danger checks, together with an APY unfold versus a benchmark and reserve fund sizing.
What the switch may seem like stays open by design. The fee-switch parameters specify that distributions to sENA might use non-cash strategies if direct income sharing is operationally or legally suboptimal, and explicitly sequence activation after the success metrics and danger checks are glad.
| Annual protocol income | Fee share to ENA | Annual fee pool | APR if 30% ENA staked | APR if 50% ENA staked | APR if 70% ENA staked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $400M | 10% | $40M | 2.5% | 1.5% | 1.1% |
| $400M | 25% | $100M | 6.2% | 3.7% | 2.7% |
| $400M | 50% | $200M | 12.5% | 7.5% | 5.3% |
| $700M | 10% | $70M | 4.4% | 2.6% | 1.9% |
| $700M | 25% | $175M | 10.9% | 6.5% | 4.7% |
| $700M | 50% | $350M | 21.8% | 13.1% | 9.3% |
| $1,000M | 10% | $100M | 6.2% | 3.7% | 2.7% |
| $1,000M | 25% | $250M | 15.6% | 9.3% | 6.7% |
| $1,000M | 50% | $500M | 31.2% | 18.7% | 13.4% |
Method: APR = Annual fee pool ÷ greenback worth of staked ENA.
Assumptions: ENA market capitalization ≈ $5.35B at calculation time; fee pool equals income × fee-share to ENA; stake participation situations at 30%, 50%, and 70% of circulating ENA.
Figures are illustrative and exclude prices or implementation frictions.
That flexibility offers ENA governance room to calibrate measurement, cadence, and mechanics based mostly on market circumstances, authorized recommendation, and reserve adequacy.
Distribution readiness additionally relies on alternate penetration
Binance listed USDe spot pairs on Sept. 9, a step that helps Ethena’s “4 of 5” adoption situation cited within the governance report. The Foundation’s replace notes that USDe is accepted as collateral throughout dominant derivatives venues utilized in Ethena’s hedge program, bettering foundation seize and redemption pathways.
The vote will ask ENA holders to ratify implementation specifics after the Risk Committee sign-off. The governance discussion board lays out the sequencing, with the Risk Committee mandated to evaluate sUSDe APY unfold versus a benchmark and reserve fund adequacy on an ongoing foundation earlier than distributions are enabled, and to publish public updates on these assessments. Those roles and the activation gating are documented within the fee-switch framework.
Forward drivers sit within the income engine. Positive funding and futures foundation elevate USDe earnings, whereas adverse or compressed funding reduces it. Recent market construction has supported Ethena’s mannequin.
In late August, Deribit’s weekly derivatives recap confirmed BTC funding reaching month-to-month highs across the mid-month peak, with ETH funding briefly topping 0.03 p.c on 8-hour home windows earlier than retracing.
A month earlier, the identical collection famous funding moderating from earlier peaks however remaining constructive on common throughout majors. These circumstances, together with the addition of a high venue and deeper collateral acceptance, traditionally observe stronger foundation seize for basis-backed stablecoin fashions.
Cost strains and focus want monitoring. The August governance replace highlights scheduled Pendle PT maturities, which may result in sUSDe unlocking and tactical flows that quickly elevate redemption exercise or change Aave-linked exposures.
The identical replace lists reserve fund composition and a migration to USDtb for counterparty and liquidity causes, including readability to loss-absorption capability earlier than any ENA-linked distribution begins.
Macro and coverage second axis.
In the United States, the GENIUS Act was signed into legislation on July 18, establishing a federal regime for cost stablecoins, together with OCC licensing for non-bank issuers, one-to-one reserve necessities, and preemption of conflicting state charters on permitted issuers.
In the United Kingdom, the Bank of England signaled it is going to seek the advice of this 12 months on permitting systemic stablecoins to carry a portion of reserves in high-quality liquid belongings, with Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden outlining a “multi-money” framework in a September 3 speech.
The coverage course issues for distribution design, given how reserve and custodial guidelines can have an effect on money motion, buybacks, or various mechanisms ENA governance may take into account.
Cross-market context stays constructive. The international stablecoin market worth has hovered close to report ranges in current weeks, per the DefiLlama stablecoins dashboard, a backdrop that traditionally correlates with deeper liquidity and tighter spreads.
From right here, the gating objects are clear: public affirmation of implementation particulars by the Risk Committee, the Foundation’s publication of the framework, and the ENA holder vote as outlined within the fee-switch parameters and the August governance replace.
Ethena says it is going to publish the ultimate implementation framework, then ask ENA holders to vote.
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