Ethena Proposes Hyperliquid Stablecoin Partnership Backed by BlackRock

Decentralized finance protocol Ethena (ENA $0.8180) has submitted a proposal to issue Hyperliquid’s upcoming stablecoin (USDH), joining competitors including Paxos, Sky, Frax, Agora, and Native Markets. The race to secure Hyperliquid’s stablecoin issuance comes as the decentralized exchange recorded nearly $400 billion in perpetuals trading volume last month, highlighting its significance for stablecoin adoption.

Ethena’s plan centers around its USDtb stablecoin, created in partnership with federally chartered bank Anchorage Digital. USDtb is fully backed by BlackRock and Securitize’s tokenized money market fund, BUIDL, providing a secure, institutional-grade foundation.

Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, emphasized the benefits of integrating Ethena’s stablecoin, noting it delivers on-chain liquidity and institutional cash management for Hyperliquid users.

If approved, Ethena pledged that 95% of net revenue from USDH reserves would flow directly into the Hyperliquid ecosystem. To encourage adoption, Ethena also offered to cover the migration costs of existing USDC trading pairs to USDH, ensuring a smooth transition for users and liquidity providers.

The proposal highlights intensifying competition among stablecoin issuers to capture Hyperliquid’s vast market. With Paxos, Sky (formerly MakerDAO), Frax, Agora, and others already in the running, Ethena’s institutional-grade backing could provide a strong differentiator.

Hyperliquid validators are set to vote on the proposals on September 14, a decision that could shape the future of liquidity and stablecoin dominance across decentralized finance markets.

By tying its offering to BlackRock’s BUIDL fund, Ethena aims to merge traditional finance credibility with DeFi scalability, positioning USDtb and USDH as potential leaders in the next wave of stablecoin adoption.