Why Is It Required?

Strata launched the USDe market on 13 October 2025, immediately following the 10/10 stress event — one of the largest volatility events for Ethena and the broader crypto market.

Since then, the underlying risk profile has improved meaningfully:

• USDe supply has contracted and stabilized, reducing collateral and reflexivity risk.

• sUSDe yield has consistently outperformed and maintained steady correlation with its benchmark (supply-weighted USDC/USDT lending rates on Aave v3 Core).

• The frequency and magnitude of benchmark underperformance events have declined.

Because the junior tranche underwrites benchmark underperformance and strategy risk, lower realized and expected volatility reduces the amount of junior capital required to protect the senior tranche and guarantee its yield floor.

In short: less structural risk → lower required risk premium.

With the updated yield distribution, the Strata USDe market’s economics are now more closely aligned with the current risk profile of USDe and the protocol’s capital structure. Higher srUSDe yield improves its attractiveness across DeFi, reinforcing the senior tranche as the core source of safe and predictable on-chain yield.

At the same time, Junior USDe continues to function as the leveraged junior-capital layer. While its relative share of protocol TVL may normalize over time, it remains fully sufficient to absorb any tail-risk events and preserve system resilience.

What Is Changing

1. Risk Premium Reduction

Strata’s Dynamic Yield Split (DYS) mechanism determines how realized sUSDe yield is distributed between srUSDe and jrUSDe. It references:

• sUSDe APY

• Benchmark rate

• Relative liquidity distribution between tranches

• Exogenously defined risk premium parameters (x, y, k)

We are updating the following parameters:

• x (Baseline Risk Premium): 20% → 10%

• y (Maximum Additional Premium): 20% → 12.5%

• k (Scaling Factor): unchanged at 0.3

Reducing x and y lowers the structural risk premium paid by the senior tranche.

This results in:

• Higher native yield for srUSDe

• Improved capital efficiency

• Stronger integration potential across DeFi venues

Importantly, jrUSDe economics remain broadly stable as senior TVL grows. Each unit of jrUSDe continues to capture a comparable portion of excess yield while remaining sufficient to absorb tail-risk events.

Overall, the system moves toward a more efficient long-term equilibrium between risk and reward — improving capital utilization while maintaining structural resilience.

2. Performance Fee Update

• Performance fee: 5% of underlying yield

• Redemption fee: unchanged (50% shared with the protocol)

The updated fee structure aligns protocol revenue with the improved risk environment while maintaining long-term sustainability.

Implementation Details

The risk and fee parameter update transaction can be found here. The changes will be executed following the completion of the 48-hour timelock period. No action is required from users.

Next Steps

Strata’s architecture is designed to evolve with market conditions.

When risk expands, premiums rise to protect the system. When risk compresses, premiums should decline to reflect improved structural stability. This update is not discretionary — it is the intended behavior of a dynamic risk-pricing mechanism operating in a healthier environment.

By recalibrating parameters to reflect today’s lower-risk regime, Strata strengthens srUSDe as a foundational yield primitive while preserving jrUSDe’s role as disciplined first-loss capital. The capital structure becomes more efficient, more scalable, and better positioned for sustained growth across DeFi integrations.

As Ethena continues to stabilize and capital becomes increasingly selective about risk-adjusted returns, Strata remains focused on building adaptive, transparent, and sustainable yield infrastructure.

Strata keeps tranching on.

Learn more about how Strata is democratising access to on-chain yields with its next-generation structured yield products at strata.markets.

Docs          Twitter / X        Discord     Telegram

Strata is a generalized risk-tranching protocol that brings structured yield products to diverse on-chain and off-chain yield strategies by splitting underlying yield into tokenized Senior and Junior tranches, each tailored to distinct risk–reward profiles. 

Since launching its first product on USDe on 13th Oct 2025, Strata has grown to over $230M in TVL across Senior USDe (srUSDe) and Junior USDe (jrUSDe), with participation from more than 10,000 users. Now, Strata is bringing structured yield products to Neutrl's NUSD—transforming sNUSD into two tokenized tranches designed for distinct risk-reward profiles.

Over the coming months, Strata plans to expand horizontally to additional yield products, including curated lending vaults, managed multi-strategy vaults, exotic delta-neutral strategies, tokenized private credit, high-yield RWAs etc. 

Why NUSD?

Neutrl NUSD has established itself as a leading market-neutral synthetic dollar, generating consistent yields through OTC arbitrage, funding rate arbitrage, and DeFi-native strategies. But the one-size-fits-all design of Neutrls sNUSD is not ideal for many investors across DeFi and TradFi as different capital allocators have varying risk appetites and return expectations, which a single yield product cannot fully satisfy.

Conservative capital demands protection.
Risk-tolerant capital wants amplified yields.

Strata's fully on-chain risk-tranching mechanism solves this and distributes Neutrl's yield to a diverse user base. By splitting sNUSD yield into Senior and Junior tranches, Strata enables Neutrl to serve a broader spectrum of on-chain users—from institutions seeking predictable, protected dollar yields to DeFi-native users maximizing exposure to Neutrl's delta-neutral yield.

The protocol introduces two liquid and composable tokens built on Neutrl’s yield-bearing synthetic dollar, sNUSD: Strata Senior NUSD (srNUSD) and Strata Junior NUSD (jrNUSD).

Next-gen structured yield products for the next generation of crypto-native yield.

Senior NUSD (srNUSD)

srNUSD is an overcollateralized, yield-bearing synthetic dollar, providing a minimum guaranteed yield floored at Ethena sUSDe yield while retaining uncapped upside to sNUSD yield. srNUSD is protected against any underlying strategy’s underperformance against the benchmark rate and underlying credit risk, with coverage provided by the junior tranche.

Senior NUSD → Risk-off asset

• Minimum guaranteed yield linked to @ethena sUSDe APY as the benchmark.

• Retains uncapped upside to sNUSD APY.

• Protected against any underlying strategy risks with coverage provided by the junior tranche.

srNUSD is well suited for risk-averse investors looking for safer, more predictable yields on digital dollars that outperform sUSDe, Aave lending yield, Sky Savings etc. where conservative capital in DeFi typically resides today.

srNUSD holders receive both Neutrl and Strata Points in addition to the native yield. While the yield may be lower than sNUSD as Senior NUSD pays a risk premium to the junior tranche, the higher points accrual makes it particularly attractive to the users who want to maximise incentives.

Junior NUSD (jrNUSD)

jrNUSD is a liquid investment product and serves as a market-priced insurance layer that underwrites underlying strategy’s underperformance against the benchmark rate and underlying credit risk, earning a risk-premium from the senior tranche leading to potentially higher yield than sNUSD.

Junior NUSD → Risk-on asset

• Leveraged upside to sNUSD APY by earning a risk premium from the senior tranche.

• First-loss capital underwriting sNUSD’s underperformance against the benchmark and the underlying strategy's risks.

jrNUSD is well-suited for users with a more aggressive risk profile, including DeFi-native power users, hedge funds, and yield farmers who seek higher yields and have a slightly higher risk tolerance.

jrNUSD holders receive both Neutrl and Strata Points in addition to the native yield. It potentially carries higher yield but lower points than sNUSD, making it attractive for real yield seekers.

Dynamic Yield Split Mechanism

Strata’s Dynamic Yield Split (DYS) mechanism dynamically distributes realized yield from staked NUSD between the senior and junior tranches. The mechanism references the sNUSD APY, benchmark rate, relative liquidity distribution between the two tranches and exogenously defined risk-premium parameters. This mechanism creates a natural balance between risk and reward, ensuring efficient capital utilization while maintaining stability and optmizing risk–reward.

The market prices risk in real-time. When more capital flows to Senior, Junior yield increases as fewer participants share the risk premium. When capital flows to Junior, senior coverage improves and Senior becomes even safer. This system enables the senior tranche to benefit from coverage provided by the junior tranche, while allowing the junior tranche to consistently outperform the underlying yield.

The table below presents simulated APYs for srNUSD and jrNUSD across different scenarios.

Built for Composability

Both senior and junior tranches of NUSD are tokenized and fully composable across the DeFi ecosystem.

srNUSD and jrNUSD Pendle markets are already live on Pendle. Integration of srNUSD and jrNUSD assets across lending protocols will be announced soon.

Both srNUSD and jrNUSD are fully permissionless tokens built on ERC-4626 and LayerZero's OFT standard to allow seamless integration across DeFi and CeFi, cross-chain minting and transfers and unified liquidity across deployments. First multi-chain deployment of Senior and Junior NUSD assets will be announced soon.

Getting Started

Senior and Junior NUSD are live. Mint using NUSD, sNUSD, USDC, USDT, or USDe directly through Strata UI.

Senior NUSD

Mint

Users can mint srNUSD by depositing NUSD/USDC/USDT/USDe. The amount of srNUSD received is determined by the real-time srNUSD/NUSD exchange rate.

At the current stage of protocol implementation:

• NUSD/USDC/USDT/USDe and sNUSD can be used to mint srNUSD through the Strata UI.

• srNUSD minting is temporarily paused when the senior coverage ratio falls below then min. coverage threshold.

• There is no minting fee.

Redeem

When srNUSD is redeemed, the user receives NUSD/sNUSD based on the srNUSD/NUSD exchange rate, minus any applicable redemption fees.
At the current stage of protocol implementation:

• srNUSD can be redeemed for NUSD and sNUSD through the Strata UI.

• 0–5 bps redemption fee is applied depending on the srNUSD coverage level. The applicable fee is displayed on the UI prior to confirmation.

• sNUSD redemptions are processed instantly, while NUSD redemptions follow a 10 day cooldown period, consistent with Neutrl's sNUSD unstaking period. NUSD can be claimed in the portfolio section.

The srNUSD Dashboard on the Strata app displays the current srNUSD/NUSD exchange rate, APY, coverage, and market cap, along with full historical data. All metrics are updated in real time, giving users a clear and accurate view of srNUSD’s performance at any moment.

Junior NUSD

Mint

jrNUSD can be minted by depositing NUSD/USDC/USDT/USDe. The amount of jrNUSD received is determined by the jrNUSD/NUSD exchange rate minus any applicable minting fees.
At the current stage of protocol implementation:

• USD/USDC/USDT/USDe and sNUSD can be used to mint jrNUSD through the Strata UI.

• There is no minting fee.

Redeem

When jrNUSD is redeemed, the user receives NUSD/sNUSD based on the jrNUSD/NUSD exchange rate, minus any applicable redemption fees.
At the current stage of protocol implementation:

• jrNUSD can be redeemed for NUSD and sNUSD through the Strata UI.

• 0–20 bps redemption fee is applied depending on the srNUSD coverage level. The applicable fee is displayed on the UI prior to confirmation.

• jrNUSD can be redeemed for sNUSD after a cooldown period that ranges from zero up to five weeks, depending on the srNUSD coverage level. The applicable cooldown is displayed on the UI prior to confirmation. During this cooldown period, jrNUSD holders remain exposed to jrNUSD performance. Once the cooldown ends, sNUSD can be claimed or unstaked for NUSD in the Portfolio section.

• jrNUSD can also be redeemed for NUSD, subject to the sNUSD cooldown plus an additional 10-day cooldown, consistent with Neutrl’s sNUSD unstaking period. NUSD can then be claimed in the Portfolio section.

• jrNUSD redemption is temporarily paused when the srNUSD coverage ratio falls below the min. threshold.

As Strata evolves from single-strategy to multi-strategy vault, srNUSD holders will be able to redeem instantly into USDC, while jrNUSD underwrites the duration risk associated with sNUSD.

The jrNUSD Dashboard on the Strata app displays the current jrNUSD/NUSD exchange rate, APY, overperformance, and market cap, along with full historical data. All metrics are updated in real time, giving users a clear and accurate view of jrNUSD’s performance at any moment.

The full market specifications, including detailed information on applicable cooldown periods and redemption fees:

Learn more about how Strata is democratising access to on-chain yields with its next-generation structured yield products at strata.markets.

Docs          Twitter / X        Discord     Telegram

A New Look for What's Next

As Strata expands into a multi-market structured yield platform, our brand and interface needed to reflect that ambition.

We’ve introduced a new visual identity and website that position Strata as foundational DeFi infrastructure rather than a standalone product. Alongside it, the new Strata app has been rebuilt with simplicity and scalability in mind, making it easier to support new markets, integrations, and users as the protocol grows.

You can explore the new Strata here:

• Website → strata.markets

• App → app.strata.markets

Multi-Market Expansion

Strata is moving beyond Ethena USDe.

We’re bringing structured yield — via Senior and Junior tranches with clearly defined risk–return profiles — to a broader set of assets and strategies across DeFi, with plans to extend into TradFi-linked yields over time.

Our first new market is Neutrl NUSD.

srNUSD and jrNUSD are launching soon, offering risk-tranched exposure to Neutrl’s diversified delta-neutral yield strategy.

This expansion marks the beginning of a broader vision:
multiple markets, multiple yield sources, all unified through a single risk-tranching layer.

Integrations Across DeFi

srUSDe on Pendle has already seen meaningful traction, with integrations across leading protocols and adoption by thousands of institutional and retail users. These integrations demonstrate how risk-tranched assets can plug directly into the wider DeFi ecosystem.

Looking ahead, Strata is focused on:

• Deepening liquidity for its core assets

• Expanding across multiple chains

• Enabling tighter integrations with DeFi protocols

As Strata becomes infrastructure, its products naturally evolve into primitives that other protocols can build on.

The Risk-Tranching Layer of DeFi

Strata is built around a simple but powerful insight: DeFi needs more explicit and programmable risk management.

Traditional finance has over $10 trillion in structured products designed to separate risk from return. DeFi, by comparison, has only begun to explore what is possible.

By splitting a single yield source into:

• Senior tranche, designed for safe and predictable yield 

• Junior tranche, which absorbs first-loss and capture convex upside

Strata makes institutional-grade yield structures accessible and composable on-chain.

Rather than abstracting risk away, Strata exposes it transparently, allowing users, institutions, and protocols to choose exactly how much risk they want to take and how they want to be compensated for it.

What's Next

Multi-market expansion will continue.
New integrations are already in progress.
The platform is built for scale from day one.

Strata isn’t just launching new products — it’s building the infrastructure to democratize on-chain yields.

Strata keeps tranching on.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi.

Docs          Twitter / X        Discord     Telegram

Strata launched its first structured yield products on Ethena USDe and rolled out Season 1 of its points program in close collaboration with Ethena. This phase validated strong demand for risk-tranching, proved the model in production, and established composability across DeFi. With these foundations in place, Strata is ready for its next phase of growth to build the risk-tranching layer for DeFi. Epoch 2 of Season 1 expands beyond a single yield source and brings risk-tranching to multiple strategies and assets. This step advances Strata’s vision to democratize on-chain yields, aligned with the broader push toward Vitalik’s vision of low-risk DeFi while continuously growing the community and strengthening the protocol.

At the end of Season 1, the launch of the $STRATA token advances Strata toward progressive decentralization. It brings the community into the core of the protocol, not only as users, but as long-term stakeholders in the protocol.

Season 1: Epoch 1 - Building the Foundation

Strata introduced its first structured yield products built on Ethena’s USDe, Senior USDe (srUSDe) and Junior USDe (jrUSDe) on Ethereum mainnet in October 2025. By pairing a purpose-built design for the evolving demand of on-chain yields with Ethena’s proven yield engine, Strata now exceeds $225M in TVL, offering users the safest way to access USDe yield through the senior tranche and the opportunity to earn >20% APY via the junior tranche.

Strata’s tokenized tranches are already integrated across the DeFi ecosystem, including Pendle, Morpho, Euler etc. and are expected to be listed as collateral on Aave pending ongoing governance approval. Stablecoin protocols like infiniFi, Yuzu and Reservoir began holding srUSDe in their reserves, validating senior tranches as the safest, most capital-efficient way to access Ethena's yield. 

The foundation is set. Now we scale.

Season 1: Epoch 2 - Scaling the Vision

This is where Strata's generalized risk-tranching protocol comes to life. Epoch 2 isn't an update—it's an expansion of existing USDe products and going beyond to build the next generation of structured yield products designed to offer tailored risk-reward exposure to diverse on-chain and off-chain yield strategies. It brings new srUSDe & jrUSDe market maturities on Pendle, new yield sources and assets, broader risk coverage, deeper partnerships, and expansion across new chains.

Beyond USDe: Multi-Market Expansion

Strata’s modular, chain-agnostic architecture enables expansion beyond USDe into a wide range of USD and non-USD assets and yield strategies across multiple ecosystems, including curated lending vaults, managed multi-strategy vaults, DEX LP vaults, exotic delta neutral strategies, tokenized on-chain and off-chain private credit and more as it evolves into the default chassis for the next generation of on-chain structured yield products, and its risk-tranching protocol becomes the engine that powers them.

Over time, Strata’s architecture will evolve from a single-strategy vault to multi-strategy vault to isolated strategy vaults, solving for the duration, liquidity and smart contract risks of underlying strategies as junior tranche evolves into an insurance layer providing wider risk coverage while unlocking a new yield source delivering the highest yields across the DeFi ecosystem on existing yield-bearing stablecoins and other assets. 

Strata evolves into the programmable and composable risk layer of DeFi, moving beyond an Ethena-centric product to become a distribution layer for underlying yields, structured into risk-based tranches for distinct risk–reward profiles. We will be announcing our next structured yield products in the coming weeks. Keep an eye on our 2026 product roadmap for a deeper look at what’s coming next.

A New Look for Strata: Brand & UI/UX Upgrade

Strata will introduce a refreshed brand identity and a redesigned UI focused on a simpler, more intuitive user experience supporting multiple markets as Strata evolves into a true marketplace for risk, connecting users who want to transfer risk with those willing to take on additional risk in exchange for higher returns.

Deeper Liquidity, Broader Access

Pendle launched PT/YT markets on srUSDe and jrUSDe, giving users the ability to fix or trade the underlying yield exposure. Now, Season 1's most anticipated milestone is on the horizon: PT-srUSDe on Aave, having already passed due diligence reviews by LlamaRisk and Chaos Labs, with final governance approval pending. Once live, users can leverage their PT-srUSDe positions on DeFi's most trusted and liquid lending protocol—unlocking massive capital efficiency for anyone holding fixed-rate yield positions.

But Aave is just the next step. Every new structured yield product we launch gets integrated across top DeFi protocols from day one. Deep liquidity. Maximum composability. We're not building products that sit in isolation—we're building the next-generation structured yield products that are most capital-efficient and composable across DeFi.

Strata is also going multi-chain very soon with its assets expanding to new EVM chains and non-EVM ecosystems, bringing institutional-grade structured products to every major blockchain. 

New srUSDe/jrUSDe Pendle Market Maturity: April 2026

New Pendle markets for srUSDe and jrUSDe will be live before the current expiry with April 2nd, 2026 expiry. The extended maturity gives users more runway for their yield strategies—lock in fixed rates with PT, speculate on yield and maximize Strata and Ethena Points with YT. Users will be able to roll over the existing positions seamlessly through the Pendle UI. More time. More flexibility. More opportunities to stack points before TGE.

Here's why this matters: Strata tranches yield by risk. Pendle tranches yield by time. Together, they create a full yield curve × risk curve marketplace—something TradFi doesn't even have in a single unified system. Users can now optimize across both dimensions: choose your risk profile with Strata, choose your time horizon with Pendle.

The Road to TGE

Epoch 2 of Season 1 runs through April 2026, giving the community a clear window to participate ahead of the anticipated $STRATA token launch. Throughout this period, holding srUSDe, jrUSDe, or any new product launched across new markets earns Strata Points, with points accumulating through usage, integrations, and deeper engagement across DeFi. Points earned during Season 0 and Season 1 are expected to play a significant role in the token distribution, reflecting the contributions of users who helped bootstrap the protocol by providing liquidity, testing products, and supporting Strata in its early stages.

Season 1 concludes in April 2026, followed by the $STRATA token launch, marking a major milestone in Strata’s path toward decentralization. Early participants are expected to form the core stakeholder base of the protocol as it evolves. Further details on how both the existing Strata community and the wider ecosystem can participate in $STRATA will be shared over time.

Let’s keep tranching on.

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always conduct your own research and consider your risk tolerance before participating in DeFi protocols. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi.

Docs          Twitter / X        Discord     Telegram

This raise will help us bring on-chain yields to a wider audience with the next generation of structured yield products engineered for tailored risk-reward.

Why We are Building Strata

DeFi is shifting from being supply-led to demand-driven as capital allocators increasingly require risk-optimized yields that reflect their diverse risk appetites and return expectations, which a single yield product cannot effectively serve.

Strata is purpose-built to deliver structured yields across any on-chain or off-chain strategy by segmenting risk into distinct senior and junior tranches, each designed to match the risk-return profile of different investor types. Risk-tranching enables on-chain allocators to deploy capital across multiple assets and strategies along the risk–reward spectrum, transferring risk to users willing to take higher risk for greater returns, while senior tranche holders earn safer, yet high yields. 

This tranching model unlocks targeted risk exposure, improves capital efficiency, and enhances risk-return pricing while catalyzing the growth of underlying yield strategy, creating a more inclusive, scalable, and institution ready yield ecosystem.

Strata was born out of an acceleration with Ethena Labs, where the Ethena Foundation backed us before there was even a product—just conviction in the idea and in our team. Ethena’s early belief helped shape Strata from concept to reality, providing not only capital but also hands-on support across BD, growth, operations, technical development, and legal guidance. 

Strata introduced its first structured yield products built on Ethena’s USDe on Ethereum mainnet in October 2025. By pairing a purpose-built design for the evolving demand of on-chain yields with Ethena’s proven yield engine, Strata now exceeds $210M in TVL, offering users the safest way to access USDe yield through the senior tranche and the opportunity to earn >20% APY via the junior tranche.

Strata’s tokenized tranches are already integrated across the DeFi ecosystem, including Pendle, Morpho, Euler etc. and are expected to be listed as collateral on Aave pending ongoing governance approval.

Risk-Tranching Layer For On-Chain Yields

Strata is a generalized risk-tranching protocol that brings structured yield products to any on-chain or off-chain yield strategy by splitting yield into tokenized senior and junior tranches, each tailored to distinct risk–reward profiles. 

Senior tranche is essentially an over-collateralized, yield-bearing asset that offers minimum guaranteed yield at a benchmark rate and is protected against underlying counterparty credit risk, with coverage provided by the junior tranche. It is designed for risk-averse investors looking for safer, more predictable yields on digital dollars that outperform T-bill rates, Aave lending yield, Sky Savings etc. where conservative capital in DeFi typically resides today.

Junior tranche is a liquid investment product and serves as a market-priced insurance fund that underwrites underlying strategy’s underperformance against the benchmark rate and counterparty credit risk. It is well-suited for users with a more aggressive risk profile, including DeFi-native power users, hedge funds, and yield farmers who seek higher yields and have a slightly higher risk tolerance.

Strata’s dual-token design introduces a meaningful shift in risk management by splitting yield and risk exposure into distinct senior and junior tranches. By transforming the underlying yield strategy into risk-tiered tranches, allowing different types of investors to access yield based on their risk appetite, Strata is redefining how on-chain or off-chain yield is accessed, managed, and scaled across DeFi.

Strata’s modular, chain-agnostic architecture enables expansion beyond USDe into a wide range of USD and non-USD assets and strategies across multiple ecosystems, including managed yield vaults, RWAs etc. as it evolves into the default chassis for the next generation of on-chain structured yield products, and its risk-tranching protocol becomes the engine that powers them. If you are keen to work/partner with us, reach out via X, Telegram or Discord, and check out our Docs.

What Comes Next

Our backers include top-tier venture firms, institutional fund managers, custodians, researchers, and traders across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. This investor diversification and strategic alignment directly strengthens Strata’s growth and distribution strategy. This funding enables us to scale our team and accelerate our mission to democratize on-chain yields by enhancing the platform's capabilities to build structured yield products on diverse on-chain and off-chain strategies across multiple ecosystems.

With more capital flowing on-chain, secure, transparent, and purpose-built yield products are now essential. This is how we unlock DeFi for the world — by ensuring it’s built for everyone.

And we’re just getting started. Let’s keep tranching on.

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always conduct your own research and consider your risk tolerance before participating in DeFi protocols. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi.

Docs          Twitter / X        Discord     Telegram

The markets, running through January 15th, 2026, provide opportunities for investors to earn fixed or variable returns on USDe, with differentiated exposure to risk and yield between the Senior (srUSDe) and Junior (jrUSDe) tranches.

By combining Strata’s risk-tranched products with Pendle’s yield stripping, a new class of structured yield products emerges leveraging DeFi’s composability offering capital-efficient access to tailored yield strategies for both conservative and risk-tolerant capital allocators.

How to Access Strata x Pendle Markets

Step 1: Navigate to Pendle

Access the srUSDe and jrUSDe markets on app.pendle.finance

• srUSDe Pendle pool: https://app.pendle.finance/trade/pools/0xa83174f1dd8475378abca9d676dad3ce97409e0a/zap/in?chain=ethereum

• jrUSDe Pendle pool: https://app.pendle.finance/trade/pools/0x41264f35ef7ef8c4905ca98052e8d7480f12859e/zap/in?chain=ethereum

Step 2: Choose Your Strategy

• LP: Provide liquidity to earn the underlying yield plus trading fees and incentives.

• PT: Lock in fixed yield by purchasing Principal Tokens through the January 15th maturity.

• YT: Gain exposure to variable or amplified yield plus Strata x Ethena points by acquiring Yield Tokens.

Step 3: Deploy Capital

Deposit jrUSDe/srUSDe/USDe into your chosen position. Yields and points begin accruing immediately (and will be displayed in the Strata UI).

Step 4: Claim Rewards

Harvest trading fees, bribe incentives, and yield rewards based on your position type.

Roll Over from the pUSDe Market

For holders of LP/PT-pUSDe-OCT16 assets built on pUSDe (pre-deposit receipt token), you can now seamlessly roll over your positions into the new jrUSDe and srUSDe Pendle markets.

All wallets that participated in Season 0 are eligible for the Strata Loyalty Boost — a 15% bonus on all Season 1 points earned.

Before October 16th Maturity:

• Navigate to app.pendle.finance

  • srUSDe Pendle pool: https://app.pendle.finance/trade/pools/0xa83174f1dd8475378abca9d676dad3ce97409e0a/zap/in?chain=ethereum

  • jrUSDe Pendle pool: https://app.pendle.finance/trade/pools/0x41264f35ef7ef8c4905ca98052e8d7480f12859e/zap/in?chain=ethereum

• Select PT or LP based on your current position

• Execute the rollover, your October position will automatically be sold, and the equivalent srUSDe or jrUSDe position purchased

• Your yield continues uninterrupted with access to the latest Strata x Ethena points.

After October 16th Maturity:

• Once your position matures, rollover options will appear directly on your Pendle dashboard

• Click “Roll Over” to select your preferred market and migrate your position seamlessly

This process ensures uninterrupted yield accrual and immediate access to Strata’s new risk-tranched USDe products.

Market Details

Strata x Ethena: Structured Yield Products on USDe

Senior USDe (srUSDe)

Senior USDe (srUSDe) is an over-collateralized, yield-bearing synthetic dollar backed by USDe, representing the senior risk tranche in Strata’s structure. It offers superior risk-adjusted yield by providing principal-protection and guaranteed minimum yield tied to the benchmark rate (Sky Savings Rate) and uncapped upside exposure to sUSDe APY.

srUSDe always earns a share of the yield generated by the protocol on the pooled USDe collateral by staking USDe. Its yield has a floor equivalent to the Sky Savings Rate (SSR) ensuring uncapped upside exposure to sUSDe APY with minimum guaranteed yield. In extreme scenarios (jrUSDe TVL ~ 0, sUSDe APY < SSR), srUSDe APY will be equivalent to the sUSDe APY.

Junior USDe (srUSDe)

Junior USDe (jrUSDe) is a yield-bearing investment product, representing the junior risk tranche in Strata’s structure. It provides leveraged upside to sUSDe APY while simultaneously functioning as a liquid insurance pool for srUSDe. By absorbing excess risk and volatility associated with sUSDe APY, jrUSDe earns a risk premium from the senior tranche, delivering potentially higher yields for risk-tolerant investors.

jrUSDe receives the residual yield after the senior tranche is paid and absorbs any shortfall when sUSDe APY falls below the guaranteed minimum yield for srUSDe tied to Sky Savings Rate. As a result, jrUSDe outperforms sUSDe APY in high-yield environments but may underperform when sUSDe APY drops below the benchmark rate.

• srUSDe: Strata Senior USDe (srUSDe) is a yield-bearing, over-collateralized synthetic dollar fully backed by USDe with additional coverage provided by the junior tranche - offering principal-protected yield with downside floored at the benchmark rate (SSR) and uncapped upside to sUSDe APY.

• jrUSDe: Strata Junior USDe (jrUSDe) is a yield-bearing investment product designed for investors seeking leveraged exposure to sUSDe APY with higher risk-reward potential.

Maturity: January 15th, 2026

Underlying: USDe, synthetic dollar by Ethena Labs

Platform: Pendle Finance

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always conduct your own research and consider your risk tolerance before participating in DeFi protocols. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi together with Ethena.

Docs          Twitter / X          Discord     Telegram

For years, DeFi and TradFi stood on opposite ends of the financial spectrum: one permissionless and composable, the other regulated and institutionally controlled. But that divide is rapidly disappearing. Today, we’re witnessing a convergence where DeFi is evolving with stronger security, risk management, and real-world integration, while TradFi is adopting DeFi’s core innovations to modernize legacy infrastructure and access new yield sources.

TradFi is increasingly embracing three foundational elements of DeFi:

1. Uncorrelated yields: powered by funding rate arbitrage, crypto-native lending, automated market-making, staking-based network security etc.

2. Composability: a modular financial infrastructure that enables seamless integration of protocols and assets, allowing real-time deployment and settlement of sophisticated on-chain strategies.

3. T+0 liquidity: 24/7 global markets without intermediaries or settlement delays.

This convergence is not only inevitable but also already underway, redefining the future of finance.

Ethena: Crypto-Native Yield

Ethena embodies all three DeFi innovations in a single product - demonstrating how funding rates and staking rewards can be harnessed to create a scalable, composable synthetic dollar. By merging crypto-native yield generation with institutional-grade infrastructure, Ethena delivers a compelling new yield alternative for TradFi allocators seeking returns that are both uncorrelated and programmable.

In doing so, Ethena is actively bridging the gap between DeFi, CeFi, and TradFi, packaging crypto-native yield into institutional-grade products that traditional institutions can trust and deploy at scale.

Why does Ethena’s yield stand out?

1. Crypto-native real yield, at scale. It combines perpetual‑funding rates with staking rewards, one of the few “real‑yield” combos that has proven it can handle multi‑billion‑dollar demand.

2. A hedge against TradFi rates. So far, funding rates and staking yields have shown a weak correlation to real world interest rates, giving portfolios a rare diversifier.

3. Custody that TradFi trusts. Collateral is held with regulated, reputable institutions, providing the transparency and security required by traditional financial underwriters..

Strata: Risk-Tranching of Crypto-Native Yields

Strata is a perpetual risk-tranching protocol designed to offer structured yield products on Ethena assets and other crypto-natives yields. Strata re-packages USDe yield into two liquid, composable tokens: Strata Senior USDe (srUSDe) and Strata Junior USDe (jrUSDe). This dual-token design introduces a meaningful shift in risk management by splitting yield and risk exposure into distinct senior and junior tranches.

As DeFi matures, investor demand is shifting from one-size-fits-all yields to tailored yield solutions aligned with individual risk-reward preferences. While elegant in its simplicity, the one-size-fits-all design of Ethena’s sUSDe is not optimal for many investors across DeFi and TradFi. Capital allocators have varying risk appetites and return expectations, which a single yield product cannot fully satisfy.

Strata x Ethena: Structured Yield Products on USDe

Strata is purpose-built to deliver structured yields on Ethena’s carry and basis strategies by segmenting risk into distinct tranches, each tailored to match the risk-return profiles of different investor types. This tranching unlocks targeted exposure, improves capital efficiency, and catalyzes the next phase of Ethena’s growth: one that is more inclusive, scalable, and institution-ready.

Senior Tranche: srUSDe (Strata Senior USDe)

srUSDe represents the senior risk tranche in Strata’s structure – a yield-bearing, overcollateralized synthetic dollar backed by USDe and additional coverage from the junior tranche. It delivers superior risk-adjusted returns by offering uncapped upside exposure to sUSDe yield, while ensuring principal protection and a guaranteed minimum yield linked to the DeFi benchmark rate.

srUSDe offers the best-in-class risk-adjusted yields with similar risk profile as lending USDe/stablecoins on Aave, superior risk profile than Sky Savings, and historically delivering significantly higher yields than both. srUSDe is ideal for conservative capital in DeFi and TradFi seeking predictable, low-risk returns that outperform both DeFi and TradFi benchmarks.

Strata’s senior tranche is tailored for institutions, DAOs, and TradFi savers seeking predictable, low-volatility yield with minimized crypto-native risk.

Junior Tranche: jrUSDe (Strata Junior USDe)

jrUSDe represents the moderate-risk, higher-reward junior risk tranche in Strata’s structure. It provides leveraged upside to sUSDe yield while simultaneously functioning as a liquid insurance pool for srUSDe. By absorbing the risk of sUSDe yield underperforming the DeFi benchmark rate, jrUSDe earns a risk premium from the senior tranche - offering potentially higher yields for risk-tolerant investors.

jrUSDe is ideal for DeFi-native users, funds, and yield farmers seeking higher yields with slightly higher risk tolerance.

By transforming sUSDe into risk-tiered tranches, allowing different types of investors to access yield based on their risk appetite, Strata is redefining how Ethena’s crypto-native yield is accessed, managed, and scaled.

• Tailored Risk Exposure
  Conservative investors prioritize predictable, low‑risk returns, while risk-tolerant users seek higher-yield opportunities with greater upside.

• Enhanced Risk-Return Pricing
  Splitting USDe yield into senior and junior tranches enables real-time and transparent market-based pricing of risk and returns.

• Capital-Efficient Access
  Both tranches are tokenized as fully permissionless and composable assets, enabling seamless integration across DeFi and CeFi. This design offers enhanced capital efficiency, flexibility, and broad accessibility for a wide range of users.

The Outcome: Crypto-Native Yields, Democratized.

Strata, alongside Ethena, is driving the convergence of DeFi and TradFi through institutional-grade structured yield products, redefining how crypto-native yield is accessed, managed, and scaled across both institutional and retail investors. By combining Ethena’s yield engine with Strata’s risk tranching, it democratizes access to tailored, risk-adjusted yields by unlocking a new class of investment products that were previously available only to TradFi institutions. By merging traditional structured finance with DeFi’s programmability and composability, Strata delivers enhanced risk-adjusted yields and capital efficiency, reinforcing USDe’s position as a core asset for scalable, programmable crypto-native yields in DeFi.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi together with Ethena.

Docs          Twitter / X          Discord     Telegram

Launching July 22nd, 2025!

We’re thrilled to announce Strata Season 0, the first step in our journey toward the mainnet deployment of the protocol. This pre-launch, pre-deposit phase is designed to kickstart our platform, onboard USDe collateral, and introduce the Strata Points Program.

Season 0 is expected to run until the mainnet launch of the Strata protocol with stUSDe and stJLP, and we aim to conclude it within three months of launching pre-deposits.

Strata Points Program

The Strata Points Program is an incentive mechanism designed to reward early users and liquidity providers with Strata points for helping bootstrap the Strata ecosystem. As a decentralized protocol, Strata’s strength lies in its community, and Points are how we measure and showcase these contributions on‑chain.

Strata Points can be earned by using Strata, engaging with ecosystem partners, and inviting new users. The program recognizes and tracks contributions across multiple seasons, rewarding those who actively support the protocol’s growth.

How it works

Users can deposit USDe and eUSDe into the Strata Points Farm on Ethereum mainnet to mint pUSDe and start accruing Strata, Ethena and Ethereal Points, unlocking early access, referral rewards, and boosted multipliers.

1. Deposit USDe and eUSDe
   Use the Strata app to deposit USDe or eUSDe into the points farm to mint pUSDe. Users can also swap in with other assets.

2. Earn Points Daily
   User deposits will be tracked and rewarded with Strata Points and other rewards daily.

3. Maximize Your Rewards
   The longer you hold pUSDe, the bigger your rewards — with even greater rewards when you use it across partner protocols in the DeFi ecosystem.

4. Referral Program
   Invite friends with your referral link and boost your rewards!

For everything you need need to know about the Strata Season 0, refer to our FAQs.

pUSDe (Pre-Deposit Receipt Token)

pUSDe is the receipt token for depositing USDe and eUSDe in the Strata Season 0 points farm on Ethereum Mainnet.

• 1:1 backed by USDe (Ethena's synthetic dollar).

• Instant mint/redeem with/for USDe and eUSDe (Ethereal's pre-deposit receipt token) without any lockup.

• pUSDe holders earn 30x Strata points, 30x Ethena points, Ethereal points and more.

• pUSDe is a fully composable ERC-20 token that can be further used across the DeFi ecosystem to maximize the rewards (up to 60x multiplier on Pendle, Euler, Morpho and more).

Strata is committed to maintaining top‑tier protocol security through a comprehensive, multi‑phased audit strategy. Accordingly, we engaged Cyfrin and Quantstamp to perform a multi‑phased audit of our Pre‑Deposit vaults. You can view all of our public smart‑contract audit reports in the Audits section of our documentation.

DeFi Integrations & Rewards

Please refer to the Strata pre-deposit page for the latest integrations and associated points multipliers, as Strata continues to add more partners across the DeFi ecosystem.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi together with Ethena.

Docs Twitter / X Discord Telegram

Ethena is on a mission to redefine internet-native money by creating a reward-generating, crypto-native synthetic dollar seamlessly integrated with DeFi and CeFi. In early 2024 the team launched USDe, a synthetic dollar designed to maintain its peg while generating crypto-native returns. Just twelve months later, its market cap surged to $6 billion, marking the fastest growth in DeFi history.

Ethena’s approach is simple but powerful: maintain delta-neutral positions on blue-chip cryptos through classic carry trade strategies, and combine CeFi-grade custody and liquidity with DeFi’s programmatic composability. The result is a synthetic digital dollar that not only delivers strong, uncorrelated returns but also paves the way for DeFi to mature into a globally accessible, institution-ready asset class.

Yet, this is only the beginning. The real challenge - and opportunity - lies in exporting crypto-native yields to TradFi users.

Internet-Native Yield at Scale

Ethena aims to bridge this gap, packaging USDe’s rewards into institutional-grade products, driving the convergence of DeFi, CeFi, and TradFi.

Why does Ethena’s yield stand out?

1. Crypto-native real yield, at scale. It combines perpetual‑funding rates with staking rewards—one of the few “real‑yield” combos that has proven it can handle multi‑billion‑dollar demand.

2. A hedge against TradFi rates. So far, funding rates and staking yields have shown a weak correlation to real world interest rates, giving portfolios a rare diversifier.

3. Custody that TradFi trusts. The collateral is held with reputable custodians, making the structure much easier for traditional desks to underwrite.

Ethena combines the scalability of crypto-native returns with institutional-grade infrastructure, making it a powerful new yield alternative for global allocators.

The Constraint: One-size-fits-all Yield

The one-size-fits-all approach of Ethena with sUSDe, while elegant and simple, is not ideal for many investors in both DeFi and TradFi for a few key reasons:

• Lack of Risk Segmentation

  • sUSDe bundles the yield into a single token but this doesn’t allow investors to separate risk and return preferences as conservative investors might want predictable, principal-protected yield while aggressive ones may want leveraged upside—but sUSDe treats them the same.

• No Customization for Investment Mandates

  • Institutional investors often have strict mandates—around risk limits, expected volatility, drawdown profiles, etc. but a single reward-bearing token doesn't allow them to align with those mandates or price risk independently.

• TradFi Requires Tranching

  • Traditional structured products (like bonds, MBS, CLOs) allow for senior and junior tranches—tailored exposure based on risk appetite but sUSDe, as a flat product, lacks that structured flexibility needed for proper portfolio construction in TradFi.

• No Tailored Risk-Return Products

  • From retail users to asset managers to DAO treasuries—each group has distinct risk-return preferences, and Ethena’s single product structure may not fully address the demand for more tailored, diversified offerings to serve a broader investor base.

The Opportunity: Structured Yield

Strata was built to provide structured access to Ethena’s rewards by segmenting risk into distinct tranches, each tailored to match specific investor risk profiles and return expectations. By bringing Strata to Converge, we aim to redefine how internet-native yield is accessed, managed, and scaled across the Ethena ecosystem.

Enter Strata

Strata is a perpetual yield tranching protocol designed to provide structured exposure to USDe rewards and unlock the next phase of Ethena’s growth. By transforming sUSDe into risk-tiered tranches, allowing different types of investors to access yield based on their risk appetite, Strata is redefining how the internet-native yield is accessed, managed, and scaled.

Strata re-packages USDe rewards into two liquid, composable tokens: Strata USDe (stUSDe) and Strata Junior Liquidity Pool (stJLP). This dual-token design introduces a meaningful shift in risk management by splitting yield and risk exposure into distinct senior and junior tranches.

Structured Products: stUSDe and stJLP

Senior Tranche: Strata USDe (stUSDe)

stUSDe is a reward-bearing synthetic dollar fully backed by USDe, representing the Senior Yield Tranche. It offers superior risk-adjusted returns by providing uncapped upside exposure to Ethena's sUSDe APY, while ensuring a guaranteed minimum yield and principal protection for investors seeking low-risk and predictable yields in DeFi.

• Principal-protected, predictable yield

• Ideal for institutions, DAOs, and risk-averse investors

Junior Tranche: Strata Junior Liquidity Pool (stJLP)

stJLP represents the moderate-risk, higher-reward Junior Yield Tranche in Strata’s structure. It provides leveraged exposure to Ethena’s yield while simultaneously functioning as a liquid insurance pool for stUSDe. By absorbing excess risk and volatility associated with sUSDe, stJLP earns a risk premium from the senior tranche, delivering potentially higher yields for risk-tolerant investors.

• Leveraged exposure to sUSDe APY

• Ideal for DeFi-native power users, funds, and yield farmers seeking higher yields with slightly higher risk tolerance.

Internet-Native Yield, Redefined

• Tailored Risk Exposure

  • Conservative investors prioritize predictable, low‑risk returns, while risk-tolerant users seek higher-yield opportunities with greater upside.

• Enhanced Risk-Return Pricing

  • Splitting USDe rewards into senior and junior tranches enables real-time and transparent market-based pricing of risk and returns.

• Capital-Efficient Access

  • Both tranches are tokenized as fully permissionless and composable assets, enabling seamless integration across DeFi and CeFi. This design offers enhanced capital efficiency, flexibility, and broad accessibility for a wide range of users.

• Accelerating Ethena’s Growth

  • With USDe as the underlying collateral for both tranches, Strata draws liquidity from existing DeFi users while also attracting new capital from TradFi—driving increased demand for Ethena’s products and expanding its user base.

Strata x Ethena: Structured Finance Meets DeFi

Strata introduces programmable structured products to the Ethena and Converge ecosystem. It democratises access to tailored, risk-adjusted returns by unlocking a new class of investment products that were previously accessible only to institutions in TradFi. By merging traditional structured finance with DeFi’s programmability and composability, Strata offers enhanced risk-adjusted yields and capital efficiency, reinforcing USDe’s position as a core asset for scalable, programmable crypto-native returns in DeFi.

Join us as we build the next era of DeFi together with Ethena.

Docs     Mirror     Twitter / X     Discord     Telegram