Ethena Staked USDe
SUSDEA liquid staking token for Ethena USDe.
The full report. Score, pillars, arithmetic, risk, scenario, signal and notes.
Research, not financial advice. Read the terms.
About Ethena Staked USDe
Analysis of 5 Feb 2026sUSDe is the yield-bearing version of Ethena's synthetic stablecoin USDe, automatically accruing returns through an ERC-4626 vault that appreciates in value relative to USDe. The protocol implements a delta-neutral hedging strategy, holding long positions in staked ETH (stETH) and BTC while simultaneously shorting equivalent amounts via perpetual futures, creating a market-neutral position that generates yield from two sources: staking rewards (3-6%) and perpetual futures funding rates.
Full overviewShow less
As of February 5, 2026, sUSDe market cap stands at $5.58B (price $1.21) with approximately 4.68 billion tokens in circulation, while USDe market cap sits at $6.49B with protocol TVL stable at approximately $6.5B, representing a 56% decline from the October 2025 peak of $14.98B following more than $8B in outflows during funding rate compression. The protocol has experienced yield recovery with current APY stabilizing in the 3.7%-5.1% range (February 2026) and average annual yield of 8.85%, significantly improved from the 1.5% low in late January but still down from 18% average in 2024, demonstrating persistent volatility dependent on perpetual derivatives market conditions.
Mantle Vault by Bybit, utilizing sUSDe, saw 50% AUM growth in January 2026, surpassing $150 million by early February 2026, indicating institutional appetite despite yield compression. The protocol achieved $1.2B in cumulative revenue and became the second-fastest protocol to reach $100M revenue (251 days), generating approximately $79 million in revenue over the past 90 days (fourth among stablecoin issuers with 3.7% market share), while maintaining deep DeFi integration on Aave with Pendle Principal Tokens enabling leveraged yield loops.
Major custody expansion fully operational in February 2026 with Kraken, Anchorage Digital, and Zodia onboarded as custodians for over $5B in stablecoin holdings (USDT, USDC, PYUSD, USDtb, and Aave yield-bearing tokens), with Kraken Custody participating in monthly attestations and weekly Proof of Reserves reporting to enhance transparency. The protocol's backing composition shifted from 80% perpetual futures in early 2025 to approximately 65% stablecoins currently, holding over $5B in stablecoins and DeFi assets to reduce funding rate dependency while moderating yields.
Bitwise filed for an ENA ETF on December 30, 2025 (N-1A form), targeting up to 60% direct token exposure with expected effective date of March 16, 2026 if SEC approves, marking potential entry into regulated investment vehicles via NYSE Arca listing. The protocol uses MPC-secured custody with institutional providers following rigorous 50-criteria evaluation process requiring minimum 7.5 out of 10 scores, with security and custody operations carrying 40% weight and 8 out of 10 floor requirements.