The Crypto Basic

Ethena Labs is moving into consumer payments with Ethena Pay, a self-custodial app that combines USDe balances with bank transfers, crypto transfers, and card spending, founder Guy Young told The Block.

The beta is being rolled out in stages across 48 countries on iOS and Android. Brazil, South Africa, Mexico, Kenya, Singapore, the Philippines, Japan, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are among the markets included in the initial rollout.

The U.S. and the EU are excluded from the initial release. Ethena expects to add those markets, as well as Canada, South Korea, and Taiwan, during the beta, subject to local regulatory requirements. The company also plans to introduce additional countries, currencies, and features each week during the testing period.

Young said Ethena Pay differs from neobanking products built around third-party stablecoins such as USDC and USDT because the app directly incorporates Ethena’s own USDe. He described the product as an effort to bring fiat and crypto services into a single experience for everyday financial use.

Users can receive fiat using International Bank Account Number (IBAN) details or send crypto to their wallets, with both routes resulting in a USDe balance. Funds can also be withdrawn to an external bank account and settled in the recipient’s local currency, according to Ethena.

The app supports fee-free transfers between users through usernames or tags. Ethena said bank transfers in U.S. dollars, euros, and British pounds carry no fee, while transfers in other currencies are charged between 0.05% and 0.1%. 

Iron, the stablecoin infrastructure company that MoonPay acquired in 2025, provides the app’s backend infrastructure.

ENA Holdings and Referrals Determine Reward Limits

Ethena Pay divides its rewards program into Standard, Pro, and VIP tiers, with higher levels available either by locking ENA tokens or meeting referral thresholds.

Standard membership is free and provides a 5% annual percentage yield (APY) on balances of up to $5,000. Pro status requires $2,000 worth of locked ENA or 10 referrals and raises the yield to 6% on balances capped at $15,000. Users qualify for VIP by locking $10,000 in ENA or referring 50 people, with the 6% rate applying to balances of up to $50,000.

According to Young, returns from USDe fund the savings yield. The company has not disclosed the funding source for the app’s other rewards.

Card spending carries a separate rewards structure. The Ethena Pay Card pays cashback in Avalanche’s AVAX token at rates of 4% for Standard members, 4.5% for Pro, and 5% for VIP users. At selected brands such as Spotify, Uber, and Claude, the maximum cashback rises to 5% for Pro and 10% for VIP, Ethena said.

Avalanche Deployment Comes as Ethena Navigates Regulatory Limits

Ethena Pay runs exclusively on Avalanche. Young said Ethena chose Avalanche because both companies are focused on developing financial products for businesses and infrastructure designed to operate largely behind the scenes for end users. He also cited Avalanche’s earlier work with Rain cards.

The launch also raises questions about the service’s regulatory status. When The Block asked what licenses or approvals Ethena Pay currently holds and where they are valid, Young did not provide specifics, saying the information would appear in public documentation this week. 

Ethena has previously faced regulatory scrutiny in Europe. Germany’s BaFin ordered Ethena GmbH to wind up its USDe business in June 2025 after the company withdrew its application for authorization under the European Union’s crypto rules. 

The expansion into payments also comes as USDe has about $4 billion in circulating supply, compared with a peak of approximately $15 billion in September 2025. Rather than using the fiat-reserve structure associated with stablecoins such as USDT and USDC, USDe relies on backing assets and derivatives positions intended to hedge price movements in the backing assets and maintain its dollar peg.

Binance is expanding its traditional-finance business with physically settled options covering more than 1,000 U.S.-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), available to eligible customers outside the United States.

The expansion follows a steep increase in activity across the exchange’s traditional-asset derivatives. Binance said its TradFi perpetual futures generated about $433.4 billion in trading volume in August, roughly 15 times the $29.5 billion recorded in January.

Equity-linked perpetuals drove most of that activity. Their monthly volume rose from $410.9 million in January to $342.9 billion in August, when they represented about 79% of Binance’s TradFi perpetual trading.

Nest and Alpaca to Handle the Options Business

Binance will provide the new options through Nest Trading Limited, its broker-dealer regulated by the Abu Dhabi Global Market. Nest will operate as the introducing broker rather than handling the trades through to settlement.

Orders will instead be sent to U.S.-registered Alpaca Securities, which will handle execution, clearing, settlement, and custody. U.S. users will not have access to the product.

Because the contracts use physical settlement, exercising them involves receiving or delivering the shares underlying the supported stocks and ETFs. Alpaca will hold the resulting securities on behalf of Binance customers.

Eligible retail users can purchase calls and puts, with buyers’ potential losses capped at the premium paid. Binance said it expects to expand its stock options offering over time.

The options follow Binance’s June rollout of access to more than 7,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs for customers outside the United States. Its product range also includes bStocks tokenized securities and equity-linked perpetual futures in addition to its cryptocurrency offerings.

Shunyet Jan, Binance’s head of exchange and trading, said stock options are part of the company’s move toward a broader multi-asset platform. He said the offering will allow users to participate in equity markets, manage their exposure, and access strategies historically offered through traditional brokers from a Binance account.

Bybit Takes a Different Route to Equity Options

The expansion is unfolding as Bybit prepares its own equity-linked options product. The crypto exchange is due to start 24/7 options trading on Sept. 17, initially using perpetual contracts linked to SpaceX and Nvidia as the underlyings.

The two offerings differ in their settlement structure. Binance’s options are physically settled in U.S.-listed securities, while Bybit’s contracts are options on stock perpetuals and settle in USDT.

U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs returned to net inflows on Monday, Aug. 31, drawing $216.7 million after $201.8 million exited the products in the previous session, according to SoSoValue data.

Friday’s withdrawals had interrupted nine consecutive trading sessions of inflows totaling more than $3 billion, making Monday’s move a return to positive flows after a one-session reversal.

BlackRock’s IBIT Dominates Bitcoin ETF Flows

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) attracted $205.9 million on Monday, accounting for roughly 95% of net inflows across U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, according to Farside Investors data.

Outside BlackRock, Grayscale’s Bitcoin Mini Trust recorded the biggest inflow at $9.4 million. Elsewhere, Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) attracted $6.9 million, Bitwise’s Bitcoin ETF (BITB) added $4.3 million, and Morgan Stanley’s Bitcoin Trust drew $3.6 million.

VanEck’s Bitcoin ETF (HODL) was the only fund in the group to record withdrawals, posting $13.4 million in net outflows. The remaining funds reported no net flows.

Ethereum, XRP and Solana Funds Extend Inflow Streaks

While Bitcoin ETFs returned to positive territory after Friday’s reversal, Ethereum, XRP and Solana funds extended their existing inflow streaks.

Monday brought another $87.7 million into U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs, extending their uninterrupted inflow run to 11 trading days.

BlackRock captured most of Monday’s Ethereum ETF inflows, with $59.9 million allocated to its iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA), according to Farside Investors. Fidelity’s Ethereum Fund accounted for $9.3 million, while Grayscale’s Ethereum Mini Trust registered $13.5 million.

XRP ETFs collected $5.64 million on Monday, according to SoSoValue. That result left the products without an outflow day for 10 straight U.S. trading sessions, a run dating back to Aug. 18.

Solana ETFs maintained a similarly long run, with Monday becoming their 10th straight day of net inflows. However, the daily total dropped to $925,010 from $18.1 million on Friday, the lowest amount recorded during the streak.

1789 Capital, the investment firm where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, is leading a $1 billion funding round for blockchain-based prediction market Polymarket, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter. 

The firm is expected to provide about $300 million of the new financing, which would value Polymarket at $21 billion, according to the report. The investment would bring 1789 Capital’s total commitment to the platform to roughly $500 million, making it one of Polymarket’s largest financial backers.

The $21 billion valuation is higher than Polymarket’s valuation earlier this year. Bloomberg reported in April that the company was seeking an additional $400 million after completing a $600 million financing at a $15 billion valuation the previous month. The new valuation would also put Polymarket close to rival Kalshi, which had raised funding at a reported $22 billion valuation.

ICE Remains Polymarket’s Largest Disclosed Investor

Despite 1789 Capital’s growing commitment, Intercontinental Exchange remains Polymarket’s largest publicly disclosed investor. The exchange operator reported in its July 30 10-Q that its aggregate investment in Polymarket preferred stock stood at $1.6 billion.

ICE assigned the investment a carrying value of approximately $2 billion as of June 30. Its position represented about 22% of outstanding shares, or 14% on a fully diluted basis.

Regulatory Pressure Builds Around Prediction Markets

The new financing comes as prediction-market operators encounter regulatory challenges in the U.S. and other jurisdictions. Authorities in more than a dozen U.S. states have initiated legal action against Polymarket, Kalshi, or both involving sports event contracts. Polymarket has also been blocked or restricted in several countries.

Those regulatory concerns have extended to Polymarket’s banking relationships. JPMorgan Chase reportedly ended its direct banking relationship with Polymarket in October 2025 because of regulatory concerns, Reuters reported on Aug. 14. The bank, however, remained interested in a possible underwriting role if Polymarket eventually pursues an initial public offering (IPO).

Webull is expanding cryptocurrency trading to Canada through Coinbase’s Crypto-as-a-Service platform, adding Canada to its existing crypto operations in the United States, Brazil, and Australia.

The launch adds digital assets to Webull’s Canadian offering, which already includes stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and options.

Coinbase to Support Webull’s Canadian Crypto Service

Coinbase will provide the underlying trading and custody infrastructure for Webull’s Canadian crypto service. The companies announced the expansion on Aug. 31.

Webull’s Canadian platform currently displays 10 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana, while indicating that other digital assets are also available.

Webull cited increased cryptocurrency ownership in Canada as a factor behind the launch. An Ontario Securities Commission survey of 2,360 Canadians found that crypto-asset ownership had risen to 25%, compared with 10% in 2023.

Canada Develops Federal Stablecoin Framework

The launch also comes as Canada develops a federal regulatory framework for fiat-backed stablecoins, forming part of the broader policy environment for digital assets in the country.

Canada’s Stablecoin Act received royal assent in March as part of legislation implementing the 2025 federal budget, although its provisions have not yet come into force. The framework provides for oversight by the Bank of Canada and establishes requirements for issuer registration, reserves and redemption.

The federal government expects regulatory development to continue before the stablecoin framework takes effect.

Ireland plans to exclude crypto assets and derivatives from a new tax-advantaged investment account designed to encourage greater retail investment, according to Ireland’s Roadmap for the Taxation of Retail Investment, published Monday by the Department of Finance.

Under the planned framework, Irish residents will be able to use the accounts for investments including stocks, bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other investment funds. Crypto assets and derivatives, however, will not be eligible.

Government Cites Complexity and Risk

The Department of Finance classified crypto assets and derivatives as “highly complex and risky” products when setting out which investments will qualify for the new account structure.

The accounts are designed to make investing simpler and more tax-efficient for Irish residents and are expected to become available in 2027. The roadmap did not specify an exact launch date.

Important tax details also remain undecided. The government plans to announce the tax-free threshold and the flat tax rate applicable to amounts above that threshold as part of Ireland’s Budget 2027.

Ireland Pursues Tighter Crypto Oversight

The decision to classify crypto among products considered too complex and risky for the new accounts comes as Ireland takes a more active approach to oversight of the digital asset sector.

That broader regulatory push includes proposed reforms to strengthen Anti-Money Laundering (AML) requirements for crypto firms, adding to signs of a cautious policy approach toward the sector.

Thailand’s securities regulator is considering a framework that would allow intermediaries to offer retail investors access to certain digital asset derivatives listed in overseas markets.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s plan would assess both the contract’s features and the market where it is traded. For retail access, a foreign contract would have to closely match a crypto derivative traded in Thailand in areas such as the underlying asset, maturity, leverage, and settlement mechanism. 

Clearing and Regulatory Oversight Form Part of the Test

The overseas trading venue would also have to use a central counterparty to clear transactions. Its regulator must belong to international regulatory or exchange groups specified under the proposal.

Contracts falling short of the SEC’s proposed criteria would be available only to institutional investors. The regulator based that distinction on institutional investors’ greater ability to evaluate and manage products involving complexity and elevated risk.

The planned framework builds on Thailand’s evolving crypto derivatives framework and its existing approach to overseas derivatives investment.

The planned framework builds on Thailand’s existing approach to overseas derivatives investment. Under current rules, intermediaries can serve retail and high-net-worth clients seeking foreign derivatives when those instruments are comparable to products traded in the domestic market.

The SEC is proposing requirements specific to digital assets because crypto derivatives available abroad can vary in structure and risk.

Crypto Assets Enter Thailand’s Derivatives Framework

The consultation follows an earlier expansion of Thailand’s crypto derivatives framework covering the assets that can underpin derivatives in Thailand. Through a notification dated March 5, the SEC added cryptocurrencies and digital tokens to the list of permissible derivatives underlyings. 

The SEC is also discussing potential contract specifications for those assets with the Thailand Futures Exchange.

The SEC is accepting public comments on the proposed amendments through Sept. 30. It has not announced when the changes would take effect.