On-Chain to RWA. The New DeFi Base Built on Yield-Bearing Stablecoins
Ethena's sUSDe supply has dropped 49% over 90 days, while capital flowed into lower-yielding USYC and sUSDS. The shift reveals that APY no longer drives allocation decisions. Instead, collateral composition, institutional adoption, and predictability now define the yield-bearing stablecoin (YBS) landscape. S&P assigned its first-ever DeFi credit rating to Sky Protocol while flagging USDe with a 1,250% risk weight. In response, Ethena restructured its collateral framework in April 2026, transitioning from a synthetic to a hybrid model. This report examines how DeFi is rebuilding its foundation by importing TradFi yield sources on-chain.
➤ The DeFi landscape is shifting from native yield generation to importing yield from traditional finance, with yield-bearing stablecoins (YBS) becoming a foundational element. ➤ Ethena's sUSDe has seen a significant supply drop, not due to failure, but a market rotation towards YBS with more predictable collateral composition and institutional adoption, like Circle's USYC. ➤ The trend indicates a move towards stability and composability over pure APY, with YBS evolving to incorporate diverse TradFi yield sources and becoming infrastructure for new DeFi innovations.
