Ethena Raises $100 Million in Private ENA Token Sale to Expand Network and Institutional Offerings
Ethena Foundation, the steward of the synthetic dollar protocol, has raised $100 million through a private sale of its native governance token, ENA. The previously undisclosed transaction, completed in December, attracted investments from major firms, including Franklin Templeton, Polychain, Pantera, Dragonfly, and Fidelity's venture capital arm, F-Prime, according to sources familiar with the deal.
The ENA tokens were sold at an average price just under $0.40, slightly below their current trading price of $0.42. However, the token has experienced a significant decline from its December high of $1.27, marking a 67% drop.
The raised capital will be used to expand Ethena’s ecosystem, including the development of a new blockchain for the network. Additionally, the foundation plans to support the launch of iUSDe, its upcoming institutional product. A portion of the funds was also allocated to repurchase tokens from existing investors, aiming to restructure the capitalization table’s cost basis, sources said.
Ethena’s decentralized synthetic dollar, USDe, has grown into the fourth-largest stablecoin, boasting a circulating supply of $5.9 billion. In January, the foundation announced iUSDe, an institutional adaptation of its staked USDe product, sUSDe. This initiative aims to integrate Ethena’s offerings into traditional financial markets by targeting asset managers, ETFs, prime brokers, private credit funds, and investment trusts.
Similar to sUSDe, iUSDe functions as a rewards token for users staking USDe. However, it features a regulatory-compliant wrapper mechanism that enables transfer restrictions, making it accessible to traditional financial institutions operating under regulatory oversight.
In February 2024, Ethena Labs, the project's development arm, raised $14 million in a strategic funding round, valuing the company at $300 million. The investment was co-led by venture capital firm Dragonfly and Maelstrom, the family office of BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes.
With this latest funding round, Ethena Foundation continues positioning itself at the forefront of blockchain innovation, bridging the gap between decentralized finance and traditional financial institutions.