In this article, we’ll explore how you can participate in the TON DeFi ecosystem and earn with Ethena.

The idea of earning passive income with crypto is always popular — and for a good reason. With Ethena now live on the TON blockchain, users can tap into a new world of yield opportunities. From staking to liquidity provision, Ethena's integration with TON creates multiple ways to grow your digital dollars. In this article, we’ll show you how to participate in the TON DeFi ecosystem and start earning with Ethena.

How to participate in the TON DeFi ecosystem

Before you begin earning rewards with Ethena, let’s first look at how you can participate in the TON DeFi ecosystem.

To begin, you’ll need a TON-compatible wallet that supports USDe and tsUSDe. Popular options include:

There are three ways to get USDe into your TON wallet:

Make sure you withdraw USDe to a TON wallet address that you control, and keep some TON in your wallet to cover transaction fees.

Once you have USDe, you can stake it to receive tsUSDe, the yield-bearing version of USDe on TON. Here’s how to do it in each wallet:

: Open the Wallet bot on Telegram, and tap on 

: Search for the MyTonWallet App bot on Telegram and launch the mini app.

: Launch the Tonhub app on your mobile device.

, and scan the QR code with your Tonkeeper wallet.

: Upon successful connection of your wallet, click on 

: Input the amount of USDe you would like to stake for tsUSDe. 

: The tsUSDe you receive from staking will automatically show up in your Tonkeeper wallet without any additional interactions.

How to earn with Ethena in the TON DeFi ecosystem 

Now that you’ve obtained USDe or tsUSDe, follow our guide below to find out how you can earn with either of these tokens in the TON DeFi ecosystem.

The simplest way to earn is by holding tsUSDe in major TON wallets. The Ethena protocol distributes dollar-based rewards to tsUSDe holders every eight hours, with a current APY of around 8%.

But that’s not all. You can also earn up to an extra 10% in Toncoin (TON) if you follow in-wallet instructions for boosted rewards, bringing your total potential yield to 15–20% APY.

: Stake USDe for tsUSDe in your wallet via 

: Follow any additional steps for boosted APY within the wallets.

You can also earn rewards using USDT by staking it into an Ethena-powered vault within the Telegram Wallet.

: Locate the Wallet feature on Telegram, either by typing @Wallet in the search bar or by tapping on the 

: Stake your USDT into the Ethena-powered vault and earn rewards regularly.

Alternatively, you can pair USDe or tsUSDe with USDT on major 

 (DEXs), such as STON.fi and DeDust, in order to earn swap fees, Ethena rewards and potential TON rewards.

: Add equal values of both tokens (USDe/tsUSDe and USDT) to minimize 

Ethena’s integration with TON is a powerful combo for anyone looking to earn steady yield in crypto. Whether you’re holding tsUSDe, staking USDT or contributing to DEX liquidity, there’s a strategy for every type of user. Start today and let your crypto dollars work for you!

Beginner

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How to earn with Ethena in the TON DeFi ecosystem

Ethena has launched on TON and introduced tsUSDe, a reward-bearing, TON-native version of sUSDe, in order to bring passive earning opportunities to Telegram’s massive user base.

As Telegram’s ecosystem rapidly grows, so too does the opportunity to bring 

 (DeFi) to a wider global audience. The recent launch of Ethena on TON is a prime example, unlocking new ways for users to earn dollar-based yields while seamlessly tapping into Telegram’s enormous user base. In this article, we’ll learn about Ethena and TON, explore how they work together and show you how to earn with tsUSDe across the TON DeFi ecosystem.

Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol that offers a crypto-native alternative to traditional stablecoins through its USDe and sUSDe assets.

Ethena enables users to hold and earn with USDe, a stable asset backed by a delta-neutral hedging mechanism, and sUSDe, which adds a yield-bearing layer. Now, with its integration into the TON blockchain, Ethena is expanding its reach beyond Ethereum to tap into Telegram’s billion-strong community.

 blockchain initially developed by Telegram and now maintained by the TON Foundation.

. Its native token, Toncoin (TON), powers transactions and staking. Thanks to its close integration with Telegram, TON is positioned as one of the most user-accessible blockchains today.

What sets TON apart is its direct access to Telegram’s user base. Since early 2025, Telegram has officially designated TON as its exclusive blockchain partner, solidifying a collaboration that began in 2023 with the rollout of TON-based mini apps.

Telegram’s distribution power, with over 1 billion monthly active users, gives any project built on TON instant visibility and scale. This makes the network a unique gateway to onboard Web 2.0 users into web3, especially in regions with high Telegram adoption.

Ethena’s integration with TON is more than just a technical milestone — it’s a strategic move to democratize access to DeFi and dollar-denominated yields. By launching on TON, Ethena makes it possible for users to interact with USDe natively within the Telegram ecosystem without needing to bridge across blockchains.

Users on Bybit can also withdraw USDe directly into any TON-compatible wallet, making it even easier to participate.

As part of the launch, Ethena introduced a new token: tsUSDe (TON-staked USDe). This is a TON-native version of sUSDe, meaning it carries the same reward-bearing mechanism, but is minted on the TON blockchain.

To obtain tsUSDe, users can simply stake USDe via Ethena’s staking interface with their selected TON networks. This unlocks earning opportunities directly within TON, without needing to interact with Ethereum or other chains.

The benefits of tsUSDe include the following:

How Ethena is powering the TON DeFi ecosystem

Ethena’s entry into TON marks one of the most important integrations in the network’s DeFi growth to date. As tsUSDe spreads across the ecosystem, users can already interact with it across a range of platforms — from wallets to lending apps. 

These integrations create a web of earning opportunities from staking and liquidity provision to lending and borrowing, all accessible through Telegram’s familiar interface.

The launch of Ethena on TON is more than just another chain expansion; it’s a step toward bringing stable DeFi opportunities to the masses, especially through the convenience of Telegram. With tsUSDe, users can now earn passively while exploring the TON ecosystem’s fast-growing 

If you're looking to diversify your earning strategies, or simply want an easier way to access DeFi, this integration is worth checking out. As more platforms begin to support tsUSDe, Ethena is well-positioned to become a core building block in the TON DeFi landscape.

Intermediate

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Ethena on TON: Boosting rewards for users

Our weekly crypto derivatives analytics report delves into macro events; the current state of crypto and trading signals from spot trading volume; and futures, options and perpetual contracts.

Last week, a public feud between US President Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk had little effect on perpetual funding rate markets but caused a brief decline in crypto spot prices. However, BTC is now just $2K below its all-time high of $111K, with options markets showing a neutral-to-slightly-bullish sentiment. In contrast, ETH options are skewed over 10% toward OTM calls, reflecting their stronger performance over the past week. Most tokens have maintained positive funding rates, with ETH's open interest increasing by $700M. Additionally, BTC's short-tenor implied volatility is nearly half that of ETH's, with ETH's 7-day realized volatility at just under 60%, compared to 30% for BTC.

Please check out the report’s highlights.

Open interest on the rise with positive funding

After a sideways trend in early June, open interest in perpetuals across nine tracked tokens has risen back above $11B, matching last month’s peak. ETH's open interest has increased from $2.6B to $3.4B, reflecting the token’s spot price performance above $2,800 for the first time since late February 2025. This rise coincides with mostly positive funding rates for ETH, indicating bullish sentiment among perpetual traders. While open interest in the tracked altcoins has grown, BTC's open interest has remained flat at $6B, down from $6.5B on Jun 9, 2025, despite BTC's spot price nearing its all-time high of $111K.

BTC implied volatility remains near the 35% floor it has held for the past 19 months, although it briefly dipped in mid-May and early June 2025. The term structure of BTC's volatility is now positively sloped, contrasting sharply with ETH's inverted shape. This disparity is partly due to BTC's low realized volatility of 30% over the past week compared to ETH's, which is nearly double at just under 60%. Over the past week, BTC options volumes have been balanced between calls and puts, unlike late May, when puts dominated. However, open interest reveals a different picture, with put OI nearly $200M higher than call OI.

ETH options markets differ significantly from BTC options markets. Open interest is primarily in call options, exceeding that for BTC by $70M. A rise in implied volatility, particularly at the front end, has caused ETH's term structure to invert again. Additionally, ETH's volatility smiles are more bullish, with short-tenor options skewed over 10% toward OTM calls. 

Despite these differences, options volumes for ETH have fluctuated between call and put dominance over the past week, similar to BTC, with both markets seeing notably lower volumes on weekends.

Advanced

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Bybit X Block Scholes Crypto Derivatives Analytics Report (Jun 11, 2025): ETH options skew over 10% toward OTM calls

Cryptocurrency whales, individuals or organizations who hold large amounts of cryptocurrency, play a significant role in market dynamics. 

Let’s look at some market sentiment data.

, individuals or organizations who hold large amounts of cryptocurrency, play a significant role in market dynamics. Their buying and selling actions can create substantial price movements, often causing a domino effect among other investors. However, whale activity doesn’t always indicate impending crashes, and it can also signal accumulation and potential price bottoms. 

For instance, during the Bitcoin dip in May 2021, an increase in whale transactions indicated that large investors were buying the dip instead of selling, leading to a market recovery months later. This trend is even more pronounced in lower market cap cryptocurrencies, where whale influence is amplified due to concentrated holdings.

Based on recent whale activity, several cryptocurrencies have been identified as candidates for potential price tops or bottoms.

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Bybit x Santiment Social Sentiment Report: A dive into coins with bullish whale accumulation and coins experiencing whale dumping

Bybit Learn

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Explainers

Altcoins

web3

GameFi

Balance (EPT) is revolutionizing web3 gaming with evolving AI companions, blending blockchain, strategy, and intelligent gameplay in one powerful platform.

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Artificial intelligence (AI) agents are a key growth area within the blockchain industry. Projects like Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET), 

 (AI16Z) and countless others have been essential components driving the overall crypto market. As of April 2025, the CoinGecko portal lists more than 500 cryptocurrencies within its category of AI Agents. These intelligent assistants are now helping individuals and businesses analyze markets, create textual and visual content, automate work processes and trade profitably.

There's a further area where AI agents on the blockchain are flourishing: the world of 

 gaming. In this sphere, bots and agents based on AI algorithms are helping users develop the best in-game strategies, succeed in the competitive world of play-to-earn (P2E) and overcome key challenges in complex gameplay.

Balance (EPT) is a blockchain gaming project that takes the use of 

 to a completely new level. The creation of the team at the world’s largest social gaming platform, E-Pal, Balance offers players AI agents that can aid them in the in-game environment and serve as their personal companions. Based on a multi-layer architecture, the platform offers some of the most cutting-edge use cases for gaming-oriented AI agents.

 (EPT) is a web3 gaming platform that allows players to easily create, own and use AI companions within the blockchain games it supports.

 Balance supports a variety of first-party (internally developed) and third-party web3 games. You can deploy your AI gaming companions and they’ll act as your assistants, friends or co-players within Balance games.

Using Balance.fun, the platform’s primary web interface, you can create your AI agents and specify various details, such as appearance, personality and functions.

Balance isn’t just another obscure crypto gaming platform. The origins of the project date back to 2020, when the E-Pal social gaming provider was launched by four young California-based technology entrepreneurs — Brian Xiong, Tung Pham, Yuzhe Norris Wang and Yuanzhe Li. E-Pal quickly became a leading force in the newly emerging social gaming field, helping players worldwide find gaming companions. By early 2024, E-Pal had become the world’s largest gaming companion platform, boasting 4.2 million users and 450,000 Epals (gaming companions).

In February 2024, the E-Pal team focused its efforts on 

 and AI technologies, starting the development work on the Balance gaming platform. In September of the same year, Balance went live.

Per the project’s documentation, the platform operates on its own chain, Balance Chain, with 

 (AA) technology used for cross-chain communication. The fungible and 

 (NFTs) held by user accounts are based on the 

A key part of the Balance ecosystem is Key Nodes — purchasable 

 that help with the processing, storage and distribution of data required in the resource-intensive environment of web3 gaming. Some applied instances are the management of real-time leaderboards and the automatic distribution of loot and in-game currency. These nodes can also support the computational requirements of training AI models. As a reward for their work in supporting the platform’s operations, Key Nodes receive a wide range of rewards and benefits, including distributions of EPT tokens, the platform’s native cryptocurrency.

As the ecosystem develops, Key Nodes are envisioned to be involved in governance, 

 launch in September 2024, Balance introduced its Points System, designed to reward early contributors to the platform. During the campaign run in September, users could earn points by completing various specified tasks in various activities, such as joining the project’s social media pages or commenting and reposting.

The 400 users with the best performance in the Points System earned a whitelist spot to receive Pioneer Badge NFTs — distinct tokens that provide owners with early access to games, future campaigns, airdrops and beta testing opportunities. Pioneer Badge NFT holders can also enjoy other benefits, such as premium NFTs and voting rights on the Balance platform.

Balance’s platform provides a set of tools to create and use intelligent companions for Balance-based games. You can design your AI companions by specifying their key traits and behaviors through custom prompts and strategies. The AI agents on Balance can assist you in battles, gaming contests, learning, routine task execution and interactive entertainment.

Balance’s platform is made up of five key layers, each one serving a specific purpose in supporting its user and developer communities. At the top of the architectural stack is the application layer, which acts as the main interface for users to interact with human and AI companions and the wider Balance community.

The application layer also contains the AI Battle Reporting System, which is designed to give users feedback and analysis tools on their performance in the platform’s gaming ecosystem. AI technology is leveraged here to provide personalized analytics and performance improvement recommendations.

A range of NFTs are also part of the layer. These include in-game asset NFTs, as well as 

 (SBTs) that serve as summaries of the holder’s achievements.

The platform layer hosts the various games within the Balance gaming universe. These include both internal games and third-party games that have partnered with Balance. The key concept uniting all of the games is the active integration of AI companions and AI players, making the platform a unique environment in which humans and AI agents play, interact and compete.

The platform layer also features an AI-driven NFT launchpad that offers a rich tool set for creating personalized NFTs for games and applications. These NFTs can be traded on Balance's NFT marketplace, which is also an integral part of the platform layer.

The protocol layer includes a trio of critical protocols — the Fans Protocol, Epal Fan Token (FT) Exchange Protocol and Asset Protocol. The Fans Protocol lets players launch and manage their Fan Tokens, creating opportunities for influencers and community builders to tokenize their efforts and launch high-potential crypto assets. Meanwhile, the Epal FT Exchange Protocol facilitates the management of (and trade in) Fan Tokens.

The third protocol, Asset, is used for the comprehensive management of a wide range of digital assets on Balance, providing easy-to-use tools for asset creation and trading.

The token layer is designed for core operations involving the platform’s native EPT token. This layer supports the use of EPT for in-game purchases, access to services and AI companions, Fan Token minting and trading, in addition to other functionalities.

This is the underlying infrastructural layer that powers the platform’s operational mechanism. It can be described as Balance's operating system, and is made up of several critical components: the node system, the Balance 

, the Balance Chain network and the platform's unique ID system.

The node system provides the computational and storage resources to power games and other functionality on Balance. In addition, the system acts as a key connecting medium between Balance Chain and the AA functionality that lets the platform enjoy cross-chain capabilities.

The Balance stablecoin, also part of the infra layer, is designed to reduce volatility and bring rate stability to the platform's gaming ecosystem. The Balance stablecoin system helps players engage in asset trading without the fear of wild market fluctuations, an important consideration in the 

Designed to support multiple chains, Balance Chain operates based on dynamic protocol adaptation, automatically selecting the optimal blockchain platform according to user preferences and needs. This dynamic adaptability is designed to reduce costs, improve operational speed and enhance overall security for users.

The final major component of the Balance infrastructure layer, the Balance ID system, is a unified and secure user authentication and identity management solution. To be introduced later in 2025, the ID system will let users access all services and games within the Balance ecosystem via a single set of cross-platform decentralized credentials. In addition to human players, also AI companions will have their unique IDs.

EPT is the native cryptocurrency of Balance. Although the platform has been operational since 2024, the EPT token was just launched on Apr 21, 2025, with a total and maximum supply of 10 billion. It was issued on two major blockchains — Ethereum and BNB Chain. EPT has a wide range of functional use cases on the platform, including the following:

The EPT token's supply allocation is per the chart below.

 as a swap pair with USDT, and through the exchange's 

 based on USDT. You can also take advantage of Bybit’s campaign dedicated to the token to grab a share of the 

Under the terms of the event, new users can earn EPT rewards by accumulating a deposit volume of at least 3,000 EPT, or by depositing at least 100 USDT and trading 100 USDT worth of EPT via their first spot trade with Bybit. Meanwhile, existing users can qualify for rewards by trading at least 500 USDT worth of EPT on Spot. The event is valid through May 5, 2025, 9AM UTC.

As of Apr 25, 2025, the EPT token has been on the market for only four days, and is trading at $0.0117, which is 26.4% lower than its ATH of $0.01708 on Apr 21, 2025, and 11.4% higher than its ATL of $0.01129 on Apr 22, 2025.

Long-term price forecasts for EPT are mostly bullish. DigitalCoinPrice 

 of $0.0412 in 2027 and $0.0615 in 2030, whilePricePrediction 

These and other emerging long-term forecasts for the token don't constitute investment advice. Given EPT's extremely short history on the market so far, 

 on the token's future prospects, carefully assess market fluctuations within the crypto gaming niche and consider all other relevant factors before investing in it or any other cryptocurrency.

Capturing emerging market trends and sensing the broader market conditions, the team at E-Pal recognized the tremendous potential of gaming companions back in 2020. Four years later, E-Pal realized that the new market dynamics in gaming called for something even more innovative — the use of AI companions, in addition to fellow humans. The resulting product, the Balance platform, is now racing to stake the claim to the best web3 gaming environment supported by AI agents.

The platform's unique features — cross-chain functionality supported by an AA mechanism, a dynamic exchange system that selects the best network for users' transactions and, most importantly, intelligent AI companions — can certainly help establish Balance as a leader in this niche of web3 gaming.

AI agents are taking the gaming industry by storm, with blockchain technology acting as a powerful enabler of these intelligent friends of ours. The Balance gaming universe — supported by the proven track record of E-Pal — has a great chance of becoming the go-to environment in which to befriend your next artificial gaming partner.

Balance (EPT): Revolutionizing web3 gaming with evolving AI companions

Compete for 2,500 USDT USDT Every Week

Balance (EPT): Revolutionizing web3 gaming with evolving AI companions

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards

Compete for 2,500 USDT USDT Every Week

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards