Arthur Hayes Backs Ethena's $360M SPAC Deal for Public Listing

Crypto heavyweight Arthur Hayes has expressed strong optimism regarding Ethena's plan to go public through a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) deal. Hayes praised the structure of the deal, which includes a significant capital raise and a strategic treasury strategy. StablecoinX, formed from a merger with TLGY Acquisition Corp., will be the first public firm to implement this strategy with Ethena, acquiring $360 million in ENA tokens. This move is part of a broader trend in the crypto industry where companies are increasingly looking to go public to gain access to capital and legitimacy in the traditional financial markets. The SPAC deal is seen as a way to bypass the traditional IPO process, which can be time-consuming and costly.

Ethena's plan to go public through a SPAC deal is a significant development in the crypto industry, as it represents a growing trend of crypto companies seeking to go public to gain access to capital and legitimacy in the traditional financial markets. The deal is also notable for its strategic treasury strategy, which involves acquiring a significant amount of ENA tokens. This move is seen as a way to provide stability and liquidity to the Ethena ecosystem, while also providing a potential source of revenue for the company. The SPAC deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, with Ethena targeting a Nasdaq listing under the ticker USDE.

Hayes' public support is backed by his own recent purchases of 4.2 million ENA for about $1.5 million. This purchase, made across Binance, Wintermute, and Galaxy Digital, shows a clear financial statement in favor of Ethena’s potential. The Ethena Foundation will use the full $260 million in cash from the PIPE deal to purchase ENA tokens on the open market. This massive buyback, representing about 8% of the circulating supply, is expected to occur at a rate of roughly $5 million per day over a six-week period. It’s also worth noting that the governance controls include the Ethena Foundation retaining veto power over any token sales and a joint investment committee overseeing treasury moves.

This news comes as ENA has already surged over 110% year-to-date, with heavy whale accumulation. Meanwhile, Ethena’s USDe stablecoin has topped a $6 billion supply and offers high DeFi yields, above 10% currently. The token ENA rose by over 50% in the last 7 days, and its current price is above $0.50. The StablecoinX announcement is notable because it can give public-market investors a transparent way to participate in a protocol that’s among the top three issuers of on-chain digital dollars, behind Tether and Circle. On the other hand, ENA accumulation suggests trust in synthetic stablecoins that don’t rely on traditional banking, which could potentially reshape liquidity and collateral frameworks in DeFi. Either way, with price momentum, whale support, and growing TVL/yield signals, this move may lay a solid foundation for possible DeFi mainstreaming in the years ahead.