Ethena Labs and Securitize have unveiled Converge, a layer-1 blockchain designed to enhance institutional capital flows and facilitate the integration of tokenized assets within the DeFi ecosystem.
According to Ethena Labs’ announcement on March 17, this initiative aims to create a network specifically tailored for both permissioned and permissionless financial applications.
The two companies plan to release technical documentation in the upcoming weeks, followed by a developer testnet launch, with the mainnet expected to go live in the second quarter.
Institutional Capital and Tokenized Assets
Ethena Labs and Securitize view the support of DeFi speculation, along with the provision of storage and settlement for stablecoins and tokenized assets, as key functions of blockchain technology.
Although speculative activity is a fundamental use case, both firms identify a more significant opportunity in the institutional embrace of tokenized financial products.
Securitize has issued close to $2 billion in on-chain assets, including BlackRock’s BUIDL fund and offerings from Apollo, Hamilton Lane, and KKR. With its integration into Converge, Securitize will serve as the primary issuance layer for tokenized assets, extending its reach beyond treasury products to include various financial instruments.
Ethena Labs will also contribute its array of stablecoins and yield-bearing assets—USDe, USDtb, and iUSDe—to Converge, paving the way for new, institutional-quality financial products.
Financial and Technical Framework
Converge operates as an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible execution environment. Institutional validators will secure the network by staking ENA tokens, while USDe and USDtb will act as native gas tokens, streamlining transactions.
The blockchain will feature three parallel application layers. The first layer is a permissionless DeFi ecosystem that supports applications enabled by USDe, including projects incubated by Ethena Labs.
The second layer will focus on permissioned applications, enabling traditional financial institutions to engage with compliant parties using iUSDe and USDtb.
The final layer will consist of innovative financial products utilizing Securitize’s tokenized securities, allowing for credit, fixed-income leverage, and equity trading through spot and perpetual swaps.
Moreover, the announcement revealed various protocols committed to developing on Converge, concentrating on institutional-grade DeFi solutions. Notable names include Horizon by Aave Labs, Pendle, Morpho Labs, Maple Finance, and EtherealDEX.
Converge will also integrate with prominent infrastructure providers, such as LayerZero for cross-chain interoperability, Pyth Network for price oracles, and Wormhole for asset bridging.
Additionally, the blockchain has garnered support from institutional custodians like Anchorage, Copper, Fireblocks, Komainu, and Zodia Custody, all of whom will offer asset management and key custody services.