USDE vs VAI
Ethena USDe and Vai, compared on the things that decide whether you get your dollar back. Live data, updated continuously.
30-day peg gap and USDE/VAI spread
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A synthetic dollar built from staked crypto collateral hedged with short perpetual futures. It is not a fiat-backed stablecoin: the peg depends on funding rates, exchange solvency and hedge execution.
Verdict band: Adequate
Vai is a dollar-denominated token tracked across 1 chains. No verified issuer disclosure is on file, so its collateral and legal structure score conservatively.
Verdict band: Caution
| Safety scoreComposite of collateral, peg, liquidity, issuer and track record. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | 74 | 48 | USDE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collateral qualityWhat actually backs the token, and how liquid that backing is. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | 58 | 55 | USDE |
| Exit liquidityWhether you can leave at size without moving the price. | ●●●●●5 of 5 | $3.42B | $0.00 | USDE |
| Issuer & legal standingRegulatory perimeter, disclosure quality and redemption rights. | ●●●●4 of 5 | 54 | 48 | USDE |
| Peg tightness (live)Absolute distance from $1.00 right now — smaller is better. | ●●●●4 of 5 | −0.014% | −0.215% | USDE |
| Worst recorded depegHow badly the token has broken before, as a stress precedent. | ●●●●4 of 5 | -2.9% | None recorded | VAI |
| Track recordYears live and behaviour through past stress events. | ●●●●4 of 5 | 51 | 53 | VAI |
| Scale / market capBigger float usually means broader venue support and tighter spreads. | ●●●3 of 5 | $4.04B | $1.77M | USDE |
| Chain reachNumber of networks where the token is natively deployed. | ●●●3 of 5 | 25 chains | 1 chains | USDE |
| Best available yieldUpside — but every extra point above T-bills is paid for with risk. | ●●2 of 5 | 44.72% | None | USDE |
"Matters" is our weighting of how much each dimension typically drives a real allocation decision. Sort any column to re-rank the tradeoffs by what matters to you.
The short answer
USDE scores higher on safety (74 vs 48), driven mainly by collateral quality and disclosure. USDE has deeper tracked liquidity ($3.42B), which is what determines whether you can exit at size. USDE currently earns up to 44.72% — remember that any rate above the T-bill yield is payment for a risk.
If both are fiat-reserve tokens, note that holding both is not diversification: they share the same short-dated Treasury and banking exposure. Genuine diversification means mixing collateral structures.
Which one fits your goal: USDE or VAI?
Capital preservation over everything else.
For park cash safely, USDE is the better fit over VAI.
- Safety score 74 vs 48, with collateral rated 58/100.
- Current peg deviation -0.014% against -0.215% for VAI.
- USDE has 1 recorded depeg event(s) — read them before sizing up.
Concentrating in one issuer is a single point of failure regardless of score. Split across collateral structures.
Key risks, side by side
USDE
- Depeg history: 1 recorded event(s), worst deviation -2.90%.
- Attestation cadence: monthly.
- Yield venue risk: 44.72% is earned outside the token itself.
VAI
- Collateral volatility: a fast drawdown in backing assets can force liquidations.
- No depeg recorded in our incident log — absence of history is not a guarantee.
- Limited public attestation of reserves.
- Chain concentration: 100% of supply sits on BSC.
| Metric | USDE | VAI |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Stablecoin | Stablecoin |
| Issuer | Ethena Labs | Undisclosed |
| Jurisdiction | BVI | Not documented |
| Collateral | delta-neutral | crypto-backed |
| Peg mechanism | crypto-backed | crypto-backed |
| Attestation | monthly | none |
| Redemption | gated | market-only |
| Price | $0.9999 | $0.9978 |
| Peg deviation | −0.014% | −0.215% |
| Market cap | $4.04B | $1.77M |
| 7d supply change | +2.79% | −0.45% |
| Liquidity | $3.42B | $0.00 |
| Best yield | 44.72% (accountable · Robinhood Chain) | None |
| Chains | 25 | 1 |
| Launched | 2024 | — |
| Worst recorded depeg | −2.9% | None recorded |
Spread, peg gap and switching cost
- Price spread (USDE vs VAI)
- +20.1 bps
- $0.9999 vs $0.9978
- Peg deviation gap
- -0.201 pp
- USDE −0.014% · VAI −0.215%
- Yield spread
- +44.72%
- USDE 44.72% · VAI —
- Liquidity ratio
- —
- $3.42B vs $0.00
A round trip between USDE and VAI costs roughly the market spread plus venue fees. At 20.1 bps of price gap, swapping $1M implies about $2.0K of price impact before fees — usually only worth it if the peg gap or yield spread is durable, not intraday noise.
Historical context
Track record is the part of a stablecoin you cannot model — it has to be observed. Here is how USDE and VAI have actually behaved since launch, including every stress event we have on record.
- USDE
Ethena USDe goes live.
- USDE
Exchange oracle dislocation (worst deviation -2.9%).
Chain coverage
USDE is live on 25 chains, VAI on 1. 1 chains carry both, so bridging is only unavoidable for the 24 networks where just one of them is deployed.
| Chain | USDE | VAI | Both available |
|---|---|---|---|
| $2.23B | — | USDE only | |
| $537.72M | — | USDE only | |
| $360.23M | — | USDE only | |
| $290.15M | — | USDE only | |
| $168.48M | $1.77M | Yes | |
| $148.90M | — | USDE only | |
| $139.79M | — | USDE only | |
| $64.53M | — | USDE only | |
| $62.19M | — | USDE only | |
| $15.46M | — | USDE only | |
| $12.27M | — | USDE only | |
| $1.82M | — | USDE only | |
| $1.26M | — | USDE only | |
| $929.1K | — | USDE only | |
| $379.2K | — | USDE only | |
| $78.5K | — | USDE only | |
| $68.0K | — | USDE only | |
| $67.1K | — | USDE only | |
| $25.6K | — | USDE only | |
| $21.3K | — | USDE only |
USDE vs VAI: frequently asked questions
Is USDE or VAI safer?
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On our composite safety score USDE rates 74/100 versus 48/100 for VAI. The score weighs collateral quality (delta-neutral vs crypto-backed), redemption rights, attestation quality, peg history and liquidity depth. A higher score is not a guarantee: both remain issuer-credit and smart-contract exposures, not insured bank deposits.
What is the difference between USDE and VAI?
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Ethena USDe is issued by Ethena Labs (BVI), backed by delta-neutral, with redemption terms: gated. Vai is issued by Undisclosed (Not documented), backed by crypto-backed, with redemption terms: market-only. Attestation coverage is "monthly" for USDE and "none" for VAI.
Which has the bigger market cap, USDE or VAI?
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USDE is larger at $4.04B in circulating supply, against $1.77M for the other. Over the last 7 days supply moved +2.79% for USDE and −0.45% for VAI.
Are USDE and VAI trading at $1.00 right now?
+
USDE trades at $0.9999 (−0.014% off peg) and VAI at $0.9978 (−0.215% off peg). The gap between the two is about 20.1 basis points, which is the cost you pay when rotating size between them before fees.
Has USDE or VAI ever depegged?
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USDE: worst recorded deviation −2.9%. VAI: no material depeg recorded in our incident set. Past peg behaviour under stress is the single best available proxy for how a token trades in the next crisis.
Which is better for large institutional size, USDE or VAI?
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For block size the constraint is exit liquidity and primary redemption, not headline supply. USDE shows deeper on-chain liquidity at $3.42B versus $0.00. Combine that with the redemption channel — USDE: gated; VAI: market-only — and size trades against the primary window rather than the order book where possible.
Can I earn yield on USDE or VAI?
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USDE currently shows the higher rate at 44.72% via accountable · Robinhood Chain, against no tracked rate for VAI. Neither token pays interest by holding it in a wallet: the yield comes from lending, liquidity provision or a wrapped yield-bearing version, each with its own counterparty and contract risk.
Which chains support both USDE and VAI?
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Both are deployed on 1 shared network, including BSC. USDE spans 25 chains in total and VAI spans 1. Bridged supply on a chain is not the same as natively issued supply, and it usually carries the bridge's risk rather than the issuer's.
What does it cost to switch from USDE to VAI?
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Budget three components: the current price spread of roughly 20.1 bps, swap or venue fees, and slippage against available depth ($3.42B for USDE, $0.00 for VAI). For meaningful size, redeeming with the issuer and minting the other side is often cheaper than a secondary-market swap.
Is USDE or VAI regulated?
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USDE is issued from BVI with monthly; VAI is issued from Not documented with none. Regulatory status varies by your own jurisdiction and by whether the token is offered under a specific stablecoin regime, so treat this as a starting point for diligence, not legal advice.