Ethena Withdraws from $5.5 Billion Hyperliquid Stablecoin Race
The post Ethena Withdraws from $5.5 Billion Hyperliquid Stablecoin Race appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Ethena Labs has pulled out of the heated competition to issue Hyperliquid’s USDH stablecoin, leaving Native Markets as the clear frontrunner in a contest worth billions of dollars. On September 11, 2025, Ethena Labs announced its withdrawal from Hyperliquid’s USDH stablecoin bidding race. The decision came after community feedback questioning whether Ethena was the right fit for the ecosystem. Guy Young, Ethena’s founder, said the company chose to step aside rather than fight the community’s concerns. This withdrawal clears the path for Native Markets, which already held a strong lead with support from major validators. The contest involves control over $5.5 billion in stablecoin deposits and could generate hundreds of millions in annual revenue. The Massive Stakes at Play Hyperliquid currently holds $5.5 billion in USDC deposits, representing about 7.5% of all USDC in circulation. The platform has become a powerhouse in crypto trading, handling nearly 80% of all decentralized perpetual futures trading. In August alone, Hyperliquid generated $106 million in revenue with trading volumes approaching $400 billion. The winner of the USDH contest could capture an estimated $220 million in annual Treasury yield that currently flows to external stablecoin issuers like Circle. This revenue would instead benefit the Hyperliquid ecosystem and HYPE token holders through buyback programs. Hyperliquid announced the USDH initiative to reduce its heavy reliance on bridged assets like USDC. Currently, 95% of the platform’s $5.6 billion stablecoin supply comes from USDC, meaning most of the interest earned on these deposits goes to outside companies rather than the Hyperliquid community. Native Markets Takes the Lead With Ethena out of the race, Native Markets has emerged as the clear favorite. The team, led by Max Fiege, already secured 30.8% of validator support before Ethena’s withdrawal. Major validators including infinitefield.xyz and Alphaticks have publicly committed to supporting Native Markets.…
