Ethena Labs, a startup specializing in artificial stablecoins, has integrated Bybit to utilize its USDe token as collateral on the cryptocurrency exchange.

This integration enhances USDe's support, enabling users to engage in perpetual trading and yield generation on Ethena. Bybit offers zero-fee trading on Bitcoin and Ether spot trading, further incentivizing users. Bybit users can also utilize the token on the Earn platform.

Ethena's native token, ENA, has experienced a 1.5% increase, reaching $0.97, with a market cap of $1.3 billion. 5% of the total ENA supply was airdropped, targeting early adopters and achieving a $1 billion market cap on the first day. The project has initiated its saturation campaign.

This integration adds fuel to the stablecoin competition, which intensified recently with PayPal's acceptance of PYUSD for international payments and Ripple's unveiling of its stablecoin.

Ethena aims to replicate the success of leading stablecoins like USDT and USDC, which collectively hold 90% of the $160 billion stablecoin market cap. The popularity of USDT and USDC is largely due to their extensive use as trading pairs on centralized exchange platforms. Introducing USDe to these pairs marks the first step in expanding its adoption beyond DeFi into mainstream trading options.

By incorporating USDe on Bybit, Ethena aims to leverage the exchange's position as the second-largest, with a monthly trading volume of $39.1 million, second only to Binance with $3.6 billion. Interestingly, Ethena's ecosystem has been on an upward trajectory despite facing challenges since its launch in February 2024. Initially offering a 27% yield on its stablecoin, USDe, it experienced a decline to 15%, reminiscent of issues related to the Terra incident.

USDe, Ethena's artificial stablecoin, is pegged to $1, supported by ETH staked on Lido and hedging stETH with ETH positions on centralized exchanges. Following the airdrop, USDe has risen to the 5th position, increasing its market capitalization to $2.4 billion by 20% at the beginning of April, coinciding with the introduction of Bitcoin as a collateral asset for USDe, which now stands at $2.29 billion.