Ethena is set to release a new cryptocurrency product targeting traditional finance (TradFi) institutions, according to its 2025 roadmap published on January 3. The announcement outlines Ethena’s plan to launch the iUSDe, a synthetic dollar, in February 2025. This product will introduce a “simple wrapper contract” that imposes transfer restrictions at the token level, built upon Ethena’s existing synthetic dollar, sUSDe.
The primary objective for Ethena in the first quarter of 2025 is to collaborate with TradFi distribution partners to ensure access to iUSDe for their clients. The targeted audience includes asset managers, private credit funds, exchange-traded products, private investment trusts, and prime brokers. Ethena plans to disclose its distribution partners by the end of January.
The iUSDe product, offering a 10% annual percentage yield (APY), has attracted over 368,000 investors who collectively invested $5.85 billion, according to Ethena’s data. The launch has raised expectations about its potential impact on the $190 trillion fixed-income markets, the largest liquid investment class globally. Ethena claims that a yield-generating dollar product could draw demand “several orders of magnitude” larger than the entire existing crypto market.
The synthetic dollar generates returns via staking and shorting Ether perpetual futures contracts. Ethena founder Guy Young emphasized the product’s potential during an interview, suggesting it could pave the way for the next logical step in TradFi—dollar savings products.
Ethena’s rapid rise in the cryptocurrency sector is underscored by its status as the second-fastest protocol to reach $100 million in revenue, achieving this milestone in 251 days. Its synthetic dollar, USDe, quickly emerged as the third-largest US dollar-based crypto product, trailing only behind Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDt stablecoin.
