According to TechFlow, Delphi Ventures partner José Maria Macedo said on social media that projects imitating Ethena Labs will face huge challenges.

Macedo pointed out that unstaked USDe has played a multiplier role in sUSDe's basis returns, making it difficult for competitors to match. Currently, about 50% of USDe is staked, and sUSDe stakers receive twice the returns of manual basis trading.

For new entrants to be competitive, returns must exceed twice the basis return plus ENA's implied return and risk premium. Macedo emphasized that Ethena also has other advantages such as brand and first-mover advantage, and predicted that imitators will find it difficult to recognize the strong network effect of stablecoins.

Macedo also disclosed that Delphi Ventures invested in Ethena and that he personally holds USDe and ENA.