USDe on reserve quality
7.0/ 35% of the score
Backed by spot collateral hedged with short perpetual positions at centralised venues; composition and hedge positions are published, but this is a hedged position rather than a cash reserve.
Best Stablecoins · Rank 08 of 8
USDe review
Users who understand they are buying a basis-trade product
Last verified August 13, 20264 scored axes
Score7.4
Self-reported only
The short answer
USDe scores 7.4 out of 10 and ranks #8 of 8 in the best stablecoins table, strongest on attestation depth (8.6) and weakest on peg record (6.5).
Not a reserve-backed stablecoin but a delta-neutral position: spot collateral hedged with short perpetuals, with the funding rate as the yield. It has worked well and it is structurally exposed to prolonged negative funding, which is a scenario, not a hypothetical.
Key facts on record
- Issuer
- Ethena
- Backing
- Delta-neutral hedged collateral
- Reporting
- On-chain plus custodial attestation
What the record shows
4 axes, weighted as published in the table’s methodology. Each score below is read from the fact printed under it.
USDe on attestation depth
8.6/ 25% of the score
Publishes reserve and position attestations plus custodian confirmations; the hedge is verifiable only through those disclosures.
USDe on peg record
6.5/ 20% of the score
Held par on-chain through the 10 October 2025 liquidation cascade — mint and redemption kept working, with about $2bn redeemed in 24 hours — but printed as low as $0.65 on Binance, whose oracle read its own thin internal order book instead of deeper external liquidity, triggering around $1bn of forced liquidations. Supply fell by several billion dollars in the weeks afterwards.
USDe on redemption access
7.6/ 20% of the score
Mint and redemption are open to whitelisted counterparties only; retail exit runs through the secondary market.
Quick answers
- What is USDe best for?
- Users who understand they are buying a basis-trade product. Not a reserve-backed stablecoin but a delta-neutral position: spot collateral hedged with short perpetuals, with the funding rate as the yield.
- Where does USDe rank among best stablecoins?
- #8 of 8, scoring 7.4 out of 10 — self-reported only on our band scale.
- What is the weakest part of USDe?
- Peg record at 6.5. Held par on-chain through the 10 October 2025 liquidation cascade — mint and redemption kept working, with about $2bn redeemed in 24 hours — but printed as low as $0.65 on Binance, whose oracle read its own thin internal order book instead of deeper external liquidity, triggering around $1bn of forced liquidations. Supply fell by several billion dollars in the weeks afterwards.
Strengths and weaknesses
In its favour
- Fully transparent, verifiable position accounting
- Held its peg through several volatile periods since launch
- Yield source is disclosed explicitly rather than obscured
Against it
- Printed $0.65 on Binance in October 2025 — a venue oracle failure that still liquidated real holders
- Depends on perpetual funding staying positive, and on centralised venues to hold the hedge
Call it what it is
USDe is not a reserve-backed stablecoin. It is a delta-neutral position: spot collateral hedged with short perpetual futures held at centralised venues, with the funding rate as the yield. Every part of that is disclosed, and anyone treating it as a cash equivalent has misread the product rather than been misled by it.
10 October 2025
During the largest liquidation cascade in crypto history, the protocol held par on-chain — mint and redemption kept working, with about $2bn redeemed in 24 hours — while the token printed as low as $0.65 on Binance, where the venue's oracle read its own thin internal order book rather than deeper external liquidity. Around $1bn of forced liquidations followed. The design worked; the venue pricing it did not, and holders using it as collateral there were liquidated anyway.
The structural exposure
Sustained negative funding is the scenario that costs money, and it has not been tested at scale over a long period. The hedge also depends on centralised venues remaining available to hold it. Supply fell by several billion dollars in the weeks after October 2025, which is the market's own verdict on how it is understood.
Who it suits
Users who want the funding-rate trade in a token and understand they are holding a position with a carry, not a dollar.
Frequently asked questions
Is USDe a real stablecoin?+
It is a delta-neutral hedged position rather than a reserve-backed token: spot collateral hedged with short perpetuals, with the funding rate as yield. The mechanism is disclosed and is materially different from a cash reserve.
Did USDe depeg in October 2025?+
On Binance it printed as low as $0.65 because that venue's oracle read its own thin order book. On-chain the protocol held par and processed about $2bn of redemptions in 24 hours.
What breaks USDe?+
Sustained negative funding on perpetuals, which would erode the position's economics, and any loss of access to the centralised venues where the hedge is held.
How USDe compares
8 services in best stablecoins
- 01USDCThe most conservative reserve profile among major stablecoins9.3
- 02USDS / DAIOn-chain collateral with transparent, verifiable backing9.0
- 03PYUSDUsers who want a stablecoin with a mainstream payments issuer behind it8.9
- 04RLUSDInstitutions wanting a trust-issued dollar on two settlement rails8.8
- 05crvUSDBorrowers who want soft liquidation instead of a cliff edge8.5
- 06USDTDeepest liquidity anywhere in crypto8.3
- 07FDUSDTrading pairs on venues where it is the default quote asset8.0
- 08USDeyou are hereUsers who understand they are buying a basis-trade product7.4