Perena Launches SOL*, Targeting 3–5% More Yield Than Liquid Staking Tokens

Perena legacyUSD*$1.02+0.3% introduced SOL*, a yield-bearing token designed to keep SOL price exposure intact while a managed carry strategy generates additional return on top. Launched August 11 in partnership with Kestrel Finance, Perena says SOL* targets "3–5% more than your current LST can return on average." Kestrel Finance, which manages the strategy layer for the product, currently shows 8.50% net APY for SOL* on its site.

How the SOL* Delta-Neutral Carry Strategy Works

The mechanism routes deposited SOL into Kamino Finance KMNO$0.025+2.3% as collateral. Against that position, the vault borrows stablecoins at a low interest rate and deploys them into on-chain venues that pay a higher rate. The spread between the borrow cost and the lending yield is the carry. Kestrel describes the net yield formula as: collateral supply yield plus delta-neutral venue yield, minus borrowing cost and performance fee.

SOL* does not pay separate reward tokens. Earnings compound into the redemption value: a holder's SOL* count stays fixed, but each token becomes redeemable for more SOL over time as carry accumulates. Kestrel continuously rebalances the vault's debt to keep it within a safe health band, which the protocol says removes user-level liquidation risk. Performance fees apply only to yield generated, not to principal, and all published APY figures are already net of those charges.

Perena described the product in the launch announcement:

SOL* vs. Liquid Staking Tokens: A Different Yield Source

Liquid staking tokens such as JitoSOL from Jito JTO$0.416+4.2% or mSOL from Marinade MNDE$0.020+0.3% generate yield by delegating SOL to validators and capturing block rewards and, in Jito's case, MEV tips. Their APY tracks network staking parameters and validator performance.

SOL* targets a different spread: the rate differential between borrowing against SOL collateral and lending stablecoins in on-chain DeFi markets. This carry can add incremental return on top of staking yield, but it carries its own risk profile. Perena's documentation states that "strategy performance is not guaranteed" and that SOL* "can lose value." Identified risks include smart contract vulnerabilities, lending venue failures, stablecoin depeg events, borrow rate shifts, and queued redemptions if vault liquidity is constrained.

Perena Expands Beyond USD* Stablecoins

SOL* is Perena's first yield product outside the stablecoin space. Its existing flagship is USD*, a yield-bearing stablecoin backed by delta-neutral strategy positions and secured on-chain lending, targeting approximately 10% APY. Perena says its Numéraire AMM has processed over $1.98 billion in volume across seven stablecoins since its December 2024 launch.

The Kestrel Finance partnership gives Perena an execution layer it did not build in-house. Kestrel's strategy tokens are composable within Solana DeFi, and withdrawals from the SOL* vault can settle immediately or queue depending on available liquidity at the time.