The stablecoin, called Open USD (OUSD), will be issued by a newly formed independent company called Open Standard. The consortium includes financial giants such as Mastercard, American Express, Discover, BNY Mellon, Standard Chartered, and DBS Bank, alongside crypto and tech firms including Bybit, Ripple, Crypto.com, Fireblocks, MetaMask, Polygon, Shopify, and Samsung. Zach Abrams, co-founder of stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge (acquired by Stripe for $1.1 billion in 2024), will serve as founding CEO. Open Standard says OUSD will launch on Solana, Stellar, Base, and Polygon, among others, later in 2026.

Coinbase's formal participation as a founding partner was confirmed at the June 30 announcement. A CoinDesk report from June 3, 2026 had described Coinbase as only "looking into participating," making its confirmed role at launch a notable development for the consortium.

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How the Money Works

The core economic pitch separates OUSD from existing USD stablecoins. Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) currently retain virtually all interest earned on their reserve assets, primarily short-term US Treasury securities. With USDC at roughly $73 billion in circulation and reserve yields near 4.5%, Circle captures an estimated $3.3 billion per year in interest that flows to Circle rather than to distribution partners or end users. That figure is an estimate derived from public reserve yield data and has not been directly disclosed by Circle.

Tether, with a market cap estimated between $145 and $184 billion, operates on a similar model and is among the most profitable financial entities per employee in the world, according to reporting by CoinDesk and Cryptobriefing.

Open Standard's model inverts that structure. All reserve earnings flow back to partner firms, minus a small management fee, and Open Standard charges no minting or redemption fees and imposes no volume caps. Abrams framed the problem plainly: "Existing stablecoins have strengths, but businesses need something that's open, low-cost, high-throughput, and aligned to their interests."

Stripe President Will Gaybrick went further, stating that OUSD will become "the default stablecoin for businesses running on Stripe, shaping economic growth through 2040." Visa's Chief Product Officer Jack Forestell said: "We're bringing discipline, risk standards, and operational rigor to Open USD, helping build trust within the financial system." Samara Cohen of BlackRock also offered a formal institutional endorsement at the announcement, reinforcing the project's positioning as regulated infrastructure rather than speculative technology.

The revenue-sharing structure is shaped in part by the GENIUS Act (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins), signed into law on July 18, 2025. The Act restricts passive stablecoin yield payments to retail users but permits rewards tied to real usage activity. OUSD's business-to-business revenue-sharing model falls within the permitted category, giving the consortium a clear regulatory rationale for its structure and a meaningful legal distinction from models that distribute yield to retail holders directly.

Total stablecoin market capitalization stands at roughly $307 billion today. Projections for 2030 vary considerably: BNY Mellon, itself a founding partner, forecasts the market reaching $1.5 trillion, while Citi projects growth as high as $4 trillion.

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Circle Feels the Pressure Immediately

Markets treated the announcement as a direct threat to Circle. Shares of Circle (NYSE: CRCL) fell more than 12% on June 30, hitting a four-month low of $66.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire commented on the broader opportunity, calling the stablecoin sector "one of the largest market opportunities in the world."

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What This Means for South Asia

The practical implications extend well beyond US-headquartered firms. The India-US remittance corridor processes $129 billion annually, the world's largest bilateral remittance flow, and Stripe is a dominant payment processor for Indian SaaS companies and exporters billing international clients.

If Stripe migrates its default settlement to OUSD as Gaybrick stated, Indian businesses on Stripe's platform will receive payment in OUSD rather than USDC or fiat by default.

The shift comes against a backdrop of rapid regional adoption. South Asia saw stablecoin-driven transaction volumes rise 80 percent to $300 billion between January and July 2025, according to Tazapay, making it one of the fastest-growing regions for digital dollar adoption globally.

DBS Bank, Singapore's largest bank and a named founding partner, adds distribution reach across Southeast and South Asia.

Pakistan represents another significant opportunity. The UAE-Pakistan remittance corridor accounts for $24 billion annually, and Pakistan's financial regulators launched a regulatory sandbox in Q4 2025 that has already approved three stablecoin remittance providers. OUSD's zero-fee minting model could make it competitive in that corridor once broader distribution is established.

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What This Means for Africa

In Nigeria, underground stablecoin usage reached $26 billion in 2024, largely in USDT, used for import and export invoicing and dollar savings amid naira devaluation. Standard Chartered, another founding partner, operates as one of the most active correspondent banks in sub-Saharan Africa and could serve as a compliance and off-ramp layer for African business customers.

Traditional remittance costs into Africa run 6 to 10 percent of the transfer amount; stablecoin rails have demonstrated costs below 2 percent on comparable corridors. Open USD's zero-fee minting model would further reduce the cost floor, particularly for sub-$50 transfers that have historically been uneconomical on blockchain rails.

OUSD will enter an active competitive landscape in Africa. Western Union launched USDPT, its own Solana-based stablecoin, in 2026 and is targeting the Africa remittance market, according to TechCabal. The Central Bank of Nigeria has also launched the eNaira while maintaining formal restrictions on crypto transactions, meaning OUSD faces regulatory friction in Nigeria for formal business adoption even as informal stablecoin usage continues to grow.

Regional operators will need to watch one broader unresolved question. Open USD's launch is oriented around US regulatory frameworks first. The GENIUS Act, signed on July 18, 2025, establishes the first federal framework for USD-backed payment stablecoins, with full enforcement beginning in January 2027. Whether Open Standard will establish jurisdiction-specific compliance pathways for operators in countries with less defined crypto frameworks, including Nigeria, Kenya, and Ethiopia, remains unclear.

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The Governance Argument

Christian Catalini, an economist at Lightspark who was involved in Facebook's failed Libra stablecoin project, argued in a Forbes column on June 30 that OUSD's structure reflects a fundamental shift in competitive logic. When the stablecoin itself becomes a commodity, he wrote, the issuer can no longer profit from scarcity alone. He described the consortium as "140 rivals who agree on one neutral standard, and share the upside."

Coinbase's participation illustrates that tension directly. The exchange co-issues USDC with Circle and simultaneously joined Open Standard as a founding partner. Shan Aggarwal, Coinbase's Chief Business Officer, called stablecoins "the most important thing happening in payments right now," adding: "We're committed to giving our customers access to the best options available."

The January 2027 GENIUS Act enforcement deadline adds urgency to the competitive picture. Firms processing payments at scale will need to designate a regulated payment stablecoin before compliance becomes mandatory, and OUSD is explicitly positioned as the compliant default for businesses already operating on Stripe's infrastructure and those of other founding partners. Whether Open Standard's distributed governance model holds together once the stablecoin is live and revenue is flowing will determine how that positioning translates into market reality.