- Ethena Labs and Securitize are launching Converge, a new blockchain designed to connect retail and institutional investors with DeFi and tokenization opportunities.
- The new EVM-compatible blockchain will launch with products from Ethereal, Morpho, Maple Labs, Pendle, and Aave Labs’ Horizon, with custodial support from Anchorage, Copper, and RedStone.
- Institutional DeFi adoption is accelerating, with the overall RWA market (including stablecoins) exceeding $240 billion, while non-stablecoin RWAs approach $20 billion across more than 90,500 holders.
Ethena Labs and Securitize have joined forces to develop Converge, a new blockchain platform targeting both retail and institutional investors looking to access decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenization markets. Announced on March 17 in an official announcement, the Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible blockchain aims to bridge traditional finance with emerging DeFi opportunities.
The Converge blockchain will serve dual purposes: providing standard DeFi applications for retail participants while offering institutional-grade services for traditional finance entities. At launch, the platform will feature product offerings from multiple established DeFi protocols including Ethereal, Morpho, Maple Labs, Pendle, and Aave Labs‘ Horizon.
On the real-world asset (RWA) front, the platform will leverage Securitize’s growing influence in the tokenization market. The company has facilitated nearly $2 billion in tokenized assets across various blockchains. Securitize recently reached a significant milestone when BlackRock‘s USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) surpassed $1 billion in net assets just one year after launching.
Custody infrastructure for the Converge blockchain will be provided by Anchorage and Copper, with additional custodial support from RedStone, Securitize’s newest partner. For DeFi functionality, users will be able to stake Ethena’s native governance token, ENA. The network will use Ethena’s USDe (USDE) and USDtb stablecoins as gas tokens for transaction processing.
The launch comes amid growing institutional interest in DeFi solutions. Even traditional banking giant JPMorgan.com/kinexys/content-hub/institutional-defi”>JPMorgan has acknowledged that institutional DeFi "has the potential for growth and transformative impact." Global consulting firm McKinsey forecasts the tokenization market could reach $2 trillion by 2030.
Neoclassic Capital co-founder Michael Bucella explained in a Cointelegraph interview why RWAs are attracting major investors: "To TradFi, that is mispriced credit facilities (i.e., cost of capital) or exposure to underpriced volume. To crypto-native, that is low-volume, secure assets."
The overall RWA market, including stablecoins (which represent digital versions of fiat currencies), has now surpassed $240 billion according to industry data. When excluding stablecoins, the total value of real-world assets on blockchain networks is approaching $20 billion distributed across more than 90,500 holders, based on data from RWA.xyz.
The growth trajectory for RWAs shows significant expansion in stablecoins, US Treasury tokens, and private credit debt instruments, indicating broadening institutional adoption of blockchain-based financial products.
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