Empire Hivemind: Ethena Founder, the GENIUS Act & Overvalued L1s
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Jul 26, 2025 Guy Young, founder of Ethena and creator of the innovative USDE synthetic dollar, shares insights on the launch of their significant $360M ENA vehicle. He discusses the structural challenges in altcoin market flows and highlights why Athena's yield model is more scalable than USDC. The conversation also delves into the implications of the Genius Act on U.S. stablecoin regulation, the overvaluation of Layer 1s, and how the market is shifting toward revenue-generating applications. Tune in for a fascinating look at the future of stablecoins and altcoins!
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Altcoins Market Cap Stagnation
- Altcoins market cap peaked at $1.2 trillion in both 2021 and 2024 without growth.
- This signals limited investor capital for speculative tokens without real market demand.
Athena's High-Cash Vehicle
- Athena raised $360 million with $260 million in cash, the highest cash ratio among treasury vehicles.
- The cash raised can significantly impact Athena's token price versus larger assets like ETH.
Athena's Yield Advantage
- Athena targets savings use cases where a dollar with higher returns is superior to competitors.
- High yield (around 18%) on assets makes Athena revenue-scale comparable to larger rivals despite smaller supply.