A New Stablecoin Is Taking Aim at Circle's USDC. Here's What Investors Need to Know.
Key Points
Open USD's revenue-sharing model is exciting, and it might be able to take market share from Circle's USDC.
Don't underestimate Circle's first-mover advantage -- its regulatory progress and payment network will be hard to shake.
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There's a new stablecoin in town that wants to shake up the industry. On June 30, a consortium of over 140 organizations announced the launch of Open USD, which has an enticing offer for partners. It proposes joint governance and sharing the interest it earns on its reserves with its partners, as well as free Open USD minting and redemptions.
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Circle Internet Group (NYSE: CRCL), which issues USD Coin, fell 22% over the 48 hours following the announcement, though it has since pared its losses.
So, is this another flash-in-the-pan token that will fall away like many stablecoin projects have? Or could it take market share from the two dominant players, USDC and Tether?
What is Open USD?
The Open Standard consortium says it will launch Open USD, its dollar-pegged stablecoin, later this year. The list of major companies on board is impressive, including Visa (NYSE: V), Mastercard, BlackRock, Alphabet, Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN), and more. Given that Coinbase was one of the original forces behind USDC and the crypto firm still shares part of Circle's revenue, its participation raised eyebrows.
Open USD's yield revenue-sharing promise also goes against the grain. By law, U.S. stablecoin firms must back each token they issue with readily accessible reserves, and they can earn interest on those reserves. Circle holds the majority of its assets in U.S. Treasuries, and its reserve yield accounted for $2.63 billion of its total $2.75 billion in revenue in 2025. Investors are worried that Open USD could challenge that stream.
Is the writing on the wall for Circle?
Things can turn on a dime in the cryptocurrency and stablecoin markets, particularly because speculation often drives price action. However, the dramatic drop in Circle's stock following Open USD's announcement seems overblown for a stablecoin that hasn't even launched. Open Standard won't be able to replicate Circle's regulatory progress nor its payment network overnight, if at all.
On a practical level, a consortium of 140 names is impressive, but getting buy-in on key decisions will be a challenge. I have enough trouble organizing an annual holiday with 10 friends -- if that feels like herding cats, I can only imagine the behind-the-scenes wrangling it will take to get those big banks, payment processors, crypto firms, and tech companies to bring Open USD to market.
Plus, neither Tether's dominance nor Circle's first-mover advantage in the U.S. will be easy to shake, as other high-profile stablecoin projects have discovered. Tether launched in 2014 and, despite being dogged by questions about how it handles its reserve funds, there are still $184 billion USDT in circulation -- almost 60% of the total. Circle's USDC ranks second at $73 billion, while the others barely register. For example, PayPal launched PayPal USD in 2023, and it has issued only $2.75 billion in tokens since then.
Can stablecoins achieve their potential?
The bigger question is whether the stablecoin industry can really grow at the rate many predict. Issuance soared last year, but growth has slowed in 2026. The market could be worth trillions of dollars, but it depends on stablecoins becoming part of people's day-to-day money management. There's huge potential, but rewiring payment infrastructure takes time.
I am not buying the Circle dip, but that's got nothing to do with Open USD. I want to see how the stablecoin sector evolves, and right now, I think established players like Visa, which is embracing blockchain technology, or Chainlink (CRYPTO: LINK), the oracle crypto that provides essential data for on-chain and real-world operations, have more potential.
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Emma Newbery has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, BlackRock, Chainlink, Mastercard, PayPal, and Visa. The Motley Fool recommends Coinbase Global and recommends the following options: short September 2026 $47.50 calls on PayPal. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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