Stablecoin depegs are a recurring feature of crypto bear markets. And the latest contender is apxUSD, the preferred equity-backed stablecoin of the Apyx protocol.
As market leader bitcoin fell sharply in the past 24 hours, hitting lows below $63,000 at one point, apxUSD briefly fell as low as 93 cents, deviating from its 1:1 dollar peg, according to CoinMarketCap.
The stablecoin is primarily backed by preferred equity issued by digital asset treasury firms, specifically Strategy’s STRC shares, which have a par value of $100.
The protocol buys these shares, collects the dividends they pay, and distributes the dividends to onchain holders. The reserve basket also includes short-term US government bonds and cash to ensure liquidity and reduce concentration risk.
Apyx runs a two-token system. apxUSD is the base stablecoin designed to trade at $1 and does not pay dividends; holders who deposit apxUSD receive apyUSD, a yield-bearing savings token that earns returns through dividends flowing in from the underlying preferred shares.
That said, because the preferred stock makes up the majority of these reserves, the stablecoin is affected by the volatility of the underlying stocks. So when STRC trades below its par value of $100, the market value of apxUSD’s reserves falls, leading to volatility in the stablecoin on secondary markets.
According to Apyx, this is not an extraordinary development.
“This is not a bug, it is the expected behavior of a stablecoin backed by preferred equity over cash deposits. Holders who understand STRC’s risk profile and its history of mean reversion should view these episodes as the asset class working through its normal cycle, not as evidence of a broken peg,” noted the protocol in a detailed X post.
It explained that its pin stability model has multiple layers to absorb stress. The preferred shares have structural features that allow issuers to raise dividend rates, which draws demand for the shares and lifts their value toward par over time.
According to Apyx, Strategy has historically used this lever. Note that STRC has traded below its face value four times since last August, and each episode ended with prices rising back to $100.
Beyond that, Apyx said it maintains collateral value that exceeds the stablecoin’s circulating supply. This buffer helps absorb mark-to-market draws in the backing assets before they meaningfully affect the peg.
“Users can compare the collateral with apxUSD supply in real-time through the app dashboard,” it said.
The explanation comes as market participants panicked over the short peg, with some saying continued volatility could shake investor confidence.
There were also concerns about cascading liquidations across the Morpho lending markets, but Apyx said they were largely misplaced. It said its main apyUSD/apxUSD Morpho market is driven by dividend inflows, not STRC’s spot price, meaning volatility in STRC does not affect that oracle and trigger liquidations.
