Ethena Labs Launches USDtb: BlackRock-Backed Stablecoin Enters Market with Premier Partnership Network
Ethena Labs has officially launched USDtb [1], a new stablecoin backed by BlackRock's USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL), marking a significant milestone in the convergence of traditional finance and digital assets. The launch represents one of the most institutional-grade stablecoin offerings to date, featuring a comprehensive ecosystem of blue-chip partners across money markets, custody, and liquidity provision [2].
BlackRock Partnership Takes Center Stage
USDtb maintains a peg to the US dollar, holding 90% of its reserves in BUIDL issued by BlackRock, making it the highest BUIDL allocation of any stablecoin, allowing USDtb to scale more effectively and providing a high degree of stability. The partnership with the world's largest asset manager brings unprecedented institutional credibility to the stablecoin space [3].
Reserves for UStb will be invested in BUIDL, which in turn holds U.S. dollars, U.S. Treasury bills, and repurchase agreements, providing a robust foundation of traditional financial instruments backing the digital asset.
Comprehensive Partner Ecosystem
The USDtb launch showcases an impressive array of institutional partnerships across multiple sectors:
Money Market Partners: The stablecoin leverages partnerships with Aave, Morpho, Euler, and Fluid to provide integrated lending and borrowing capabilities across decentralized finance protocols.
Custody Infrastructure: The stablecoin is being launched in partnership with Securitize, a leader in tokenization of real-world assets. Additional custody partners include Copper, Coinbase, Zodia Custody, and Komainu, ensuring institutional-grade asset protection and regulatory compliance.
Liquidity Provision: Liquidity providers for the new stablecoin include Jump, Cumberland, Amber Group, GSR Markets and SCB Limited, establishing deep market liquidity from launch.
Security and Compliance Framework
USDtb underwent three independent security reviews by Pashov, Quantstamp, and Cyfrin in October, with no major issues found, demonstrating the project's commitment to security standards expected by institutional users.
The partnership with Wintermute and other market makers ensures robust price stability mechanisms, while the involvement of established custodians like Coinbase and newer institutional players like Komainu provides diverse custody options for different investor profiles.
Market Context and Implications
Ethena has experienced rapid growth since its launch earlier this year, attracting over $6 billion in user funds [4]. USDe remains the third-largest USD-denominated crypto asset, with a total value locked exceeding $5 billion.
The launch of USDtb represents a strategic diversification for Ethena Labs, offering a more traditional reserve structure compared to their existing synthetic dollar USDe. This move toward BlackRock-backed reserves signals the growing institutionalization of the stablecoin market and the increasing appetite for traditional finance integration in digital asset infrastructure.
The comprehensive partner network spanning money markets, custody, and liquidity provision positions USDtb as a fully-integrated institutional stablecoin solution, potentially setting new standards for institutional adoption in the digital asset space.