Ethena’s native token ENA surged after the Ethena Foundation announced a package of governance and treasury updates aimed at changing how the protocol’s revenue is handled and how certain investor token schedules unwind.

In an ecosystem update posted Thursday, the foundation detailed four changes, including a vote on a “fee-switch” mechanism that would direct a large share of net revenue toward ENA buybacks once Ethena’s synthetic dollar supply (USDe) reaches a specified milestone.

Key takeaways

• The Ethena Foundation opened a governance vote on a fee-switch proposal tied to USDe reaching a $7.5 billion milestone.
• Under the proposal, 95% of the foundation’s net revenue from Ethena’s core business lines would be used to buy ENA after the threshold is met.
• Tokenholders have until Sept. 2 to vote; at the time of publication, Snapshot showed 65 votes representing about 14.4 million ENA voting power, all in favor.
• The foundation also said it completed a buyout of locked ENA held by certain early investors and agreed to adjust remaining investor unlock timing to Oct. 5.

Fee-switch proposal links buybacks to USDe scale

The center of the announcement is a governance vote on whether to switch Ethena’s fee handling toward token repurchases. According to the Ethena Foundation’s blog post, 95% of the net revenue paid to the foundation from Ethena’s core business lines would be allocated to purchase ENA once the circulating supply of USDe reaches the first milestone of $7.5 billion.

Voting runs until Sept. 2. Data from Snapshot shows all cast votes so far have supported the proposal. At the time of writing, 65 votes accounting for roughly 14.4 million ENA in voting power were recorded, with every one of them in favor.

For ENA holders, the significance is practical: if implemented, the buyback program would effectively transform a portion of protocol revenue into recurring demand for the token—though the trigger is conditional on USDe growth, which means timing depends on how quickly supply climbs to the milestone.

ENA reacts as governance activity accelerates

Market pricing reflected the renewed focus on treasury policy. CoinGecko data shows ENA rose 10.7% over 24 hours and gained 27% over the past week, trading above $0.17 as of 8:11 am UTC on Friday.

Even without assuming the vote’s outcome, the governance framing itself can matter to traders: buyback mechanisms are often viewed as a direct link between protocol economics and token supply dynamics. Here, the foundation’s proposal is explicit about how revenue would be used after the USDe threshold is reached.

Locked token buyout and changes to investor unlock timing

Beyond the fee-switch idea, the Ethena Foundation outlined steps affecting locked ENA held by early participants. The foundation said it had bought locked ENA from certain major seed investors who reduced some holdings during the previous nine months.

In a separate development, the foundation stated it agreed with lead investors to release remaining unvested investor allocations on Oct. 5, replacing the existing monthly unlock schedule. The foundation emphasized that team tokens remain subject to their original vesting schedules.

Importantly, the change described in the update accelerates remaining investor unlocks rather than canceling the tokens. For market watchers, that distinction is notable: faster unlocks can increase near-term supply pressure if demand does not keep pace, even if buyback plans later aim to offset supply effects through repurchases.

Where Ethena’s stablecoin ranks and why it matters for ENA

Ethena’s synthetic dollar, USDe, is listed by DefiLlama as the sixth-largest stablecoin by market capitalization, with roughly $4 billion at the time referenced in the update. A protocol’s stablecoin scale can be consequential because governance proposals and revenue flows are often tied to activity that grows with circulating supply.

In this case, the foundation’s fee-switch vote is explicitly tied to USDe reaching $7.5 billion in circulating supply—meaning the token’s economics are positioned to change as the synthetic dollar expands. Investors should therefore track not only ENA’s price, but also USDe’s growth rate toward the milestone.

Strategic investor interest remains part of the backdrop

Ethena’s ecosystem update comes amid ongoing institutional attention. Earlier coverage cited an investment by M2 Capital, the investment arm of UAE-based M2 Holdings, which put $20 million into ENA as a strategic holding in September 2025 while total value locked neared $15 billion. The conglomerate had previously invested in the Sui Foundation.

While that investment does not determine the outcome of the new vote or the timing of unlocks, it underscores that ENA is being treated as a strategic position by at least some larger investors—precisely the group that is likely to weigh governance and supply-schedule changes closely.

With the fee-switch vote still open until Sept. 2 and the remaining unvested allocation timing now set for Oct. 5, the next key question for ENA holders is whether USDe’s path toward the $7.5 billion milestone keeps pace—while also monitoring how accelerated unlocks might affect supply in the interim.

On 26 August, the US Commerce Department released July data on the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index. Core PCE rose 0.2% month-on-month and 3.3% year-on-year, in line with market expectations. Ellen Zentner, Chief Economic Strategist at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, noted that the modest upside surprise in inflation was not significant enough to shift the balance of expectations ahead of the Federal Reserve’s September meeting.

Earlier, on 19 August, minutes from the Fed’s July meeting showed that policymakers remained open to further rate increases if inflationary pressures persisted, with three committee members having already voted in favour of a hike. Against this backdrop, Treasury yields remain close to multi-year highs, keeping rate expectations tilted towards the possibility of further tightening.

Technical Analysis of Dow Jones

The four-hour Dow Jones chart (WS30m on FXOpen) shows a short-term downtrend, with prices steadily declining from a local peak around 54,700 and establishing a descending trendline in the process.

On 25 August, the index moved beyond the trendline and subsequently formed the current market profile. The index is now trading between the Point of Control (POC) at 53,490 and the upper boundary of the profile at 53,700.

If the breakout develops into a sustained advance, the next significant level to watch is the red resistance area around 53,900.

Conversely, if the trend breakout proves to be false and the decline resumes, the price would first need to move through the POC at 53,490 and then break below the lower profile boundary at 53,320. Only after clearing this area would the path towards the green support level around 53,150 become more open.

The RSI + MAs indicator currently shows readings of 52, 55 and 51. The oscillator and both moving averages remain within the neutral zone, although the moving averages are still displaying a bullish signal.

Key Takeaways

The attempted break above the descending trendline is taking place within a dense market-profile area, providing no clear confirmation of a sustained move in either direction.

The index’s next move could depend on whether the current divide in expectations surrounding the Fed’s September decision persists or whether incoming economic data shifts the balance decisively in one direction.

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This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only. It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

The native token of the synthetic dollar protocol Ethena (ENA) registered double-digit gains after the Ethena Foundation unveiled four ecosystem changes, including a proposal for revenue-funded token buybacks and a completed buyout of locked tokens held by some early investors.

The Ethena Foundation opened a vote on a fee-switch proposal under which 95% of the net revenue paid to it from Ethena’s core business lines would be used to purchase ENA once the circulating supply of USDe reaches the first proposed milestone of $7.5 billion, the foundation said in a Thursday blog post.

Tokenholders have until Sept. 2 to cast their votes. At press time, 65 votes representing about 14.4 million ENA in voting power had been cast, all in favor of the fee-switch proposal, according to Snapshot.

The ENA token rose 10.7% over the 24 hours and gained 27% during the past week to trade above $0.17 as of 8:11 am UTC on Friday, according to CoinGecko data.

The foundation also said it had bought locked ENA from certain major seed investors who sold some of their holdings during the past nine months. Separately, it agreed with lead investors to release the remaining unvested investor allocations on Oct. 5, replacing the existing monthly unlock schedule. Team tokens will remain subject to their original vesting schedules.

The change accelerates the remaining investor unlocks rather than canceling the tokens.

Ethena’s synthetic dollar, Ethena USDe (USDE), ranks as the sixth-largest stablecoin with a $4 billion market capitalization on DefiLlama.

In September 2025, M2 Capital, the investment arm of UAE-based M2 Holdings, invested $20 million in ENA to make it its latest strategic holding. The conglomerate previously invested in the Sui Foundation.

Magazine: Ethereum risks losing No. 2 spot as stablecoins gain ground

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Gold has staged a remarkable comeback, surging almost 14% in August alone and reclaiming levels not seen since May, a stark reversal from late July, when prices had dipped below $4,000. The rally has been driven by a genuinely unusual combination of forces: the US Treasury’s surprise decision to double its long-dated bond buyback programme reignited fears over fiscal credibility and dollar debasement, while persistent Middle East tensions and steady Chinese buying have kept safe-haven demand firmly in place.

All eyes now turn to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech, the week’s pivotal event. A hawkish tone or a fresh rise in real yields could trigger meaningful profit-taking after such a sharp run-up, while continued dollar weakness would likely keep gold’s momentum intact. Adding to the tension, this week’s data slate, including preliminary Q2 GDP, jobless claims, and Michigan’s inflation expectations, gives markets plenty of reasons to stay on edge.

With gold already up nearly 96% over the past year and testing territory unseen in months, the metal finds itself balancing two powerful forces: genuine structural demand against a market that may finally be due for a pause.

Technical Analysis of XAU/USD

As the XAU/USD chart shows, gold has been trading within a well-respected ascending trendline since the 4,022 low in late July, having earlier broken decisively above the descending trendline that capped the May–July decline. Price recently touched a fresh high near 4,698, the 0 Fibonacci level, before pulling back and now testing the confluence of the ascending trendline and the 50-period EMA near 4,561.

Bullish Scenario

Should buyers defend this trendline-EMA confluence, the broader uptrend structure remains firmly intact. A renewed push higher would target a retest of the 4,698 high, with a confirmed break above that level opening the door toward the 4,760–4,800 resistance zone and fresh record territory beyond.

Bearish Scenario

Conversely, a decisive break below the ascending trendline and the 50-period EMA would signal that a deeper correction is underway, exposing the 0.382 Fibonacci retracement near 4,440 as the first real test, with a further slide risking a retest of the 0.5 level around 4,360.

With price sitting right at the intersection of a multi-week trendline and the 50-period EMA, gold’s next move looks set to determine whether this powerful August rally has more room to run or whether it’s due for a deeper pause.

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This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only. It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.