Open USD Launches with Unique Stablecoin Model to Compete with Tether and Circle

FinanceOpen USD Launches with Unique Stablecoin Model to Compete with Tether and Circle

CEO Zach Abrams stated that the "overwhelming majority" of Open Standard's equity will be allocated to partners over time, depending on their contributions to expanding the stablecoin.

By Krisztian Sandor | Edited by Stephen Alpher Updated Sep 30, 2026, 11:36 a.m. EDT Published Sep 30, 2026, 11:34 a.m. EDT 5 min read

Open USD, a stablecoin initiative supported by major players like Mastercard, Visa, and Stripe, officially launched on Wednesday across Ethereum, Solana, Base, and Tempo. This entry aims to disrupt a market currently dominated by USDT and USDC, focusing on applications in payments, banking, settlement, and institutional trading.

• Open Standard's initial founding partners include Coinbase, Mastercard, Shopify, Stripe, and Visa, each holding an equal stake in the venture.
• According to CEO Zach Abrams, the bulk of Open Standard's equity will eventually be shared with founders and partners based on their roles in enhancing OUSD's supply and transaction volume.
• The partner network for Open Standard has expanded from over 140 to more than 200 companies, with recent additions including UBS, Japan's SBI Holdings, and fintech firm Jeeves.

Open Standard, a new stablecoin issuer backed by Coinbase, Mastercard, Stripe, and Visa, has launched its dollar-pegged stablecoin, OUSD, with a model aimed at distributing economic benefits and ownership among companies involved in its distribution and usage, rather than centralizing them with a single issuer.

After being introduced in June, Open USD went live on Wednesday on Ethereum, Solana, Base, and Tempo, according to CEO Zach Abrams.

Abrams, who previously co-founded and led the stablecoin infrastructure company Bridge (acquired by Stripe for $1.1 billion in 2024), commented, "We want to be the most useful stablecoin, the same way the U.S. dollar is useful. Every other stablecoin is building a fund. We're building money."

The stablecoin market, valued at over $300 billion, is primarily led by Tether's USDT, which has around $143 billion in circulation, and Circle's USDC, with approximately $74 billion.

As more banks, payment processors, and fintech companies enter this space, competition is shifting from merely issuing digital dollars to include aspects like distribution, liquidity, and the platforms utilized by consumers.

Abrams believes there is significant potential for Open USD, which is crafted for banking, cross-border transactions, card settlements, institutional trading, and lending. Its economic model is designed to reward companies that contribute to OUSD’s supply and activity.

He remarked, "When are stablecoins successful? It's when they recede into the background and just become a core part of your mom's bank account."

Transitioning from 140 Partners to Five Founders

Open Standard was initially launched in June with more than 140 partners spanning payments, banking, crypto, and technology sectors, including major institutions like BlackRock, BNY, and Standard Chartered.

This initial announcement caused tremors in competitor Circle, as concerns arose that significant USDC partners, such as Coinbase, Visa, and Mastercard, were aligning with a rival digital dollar.

Some analysts, however, questioned the implications of these partnerships and whether a consortium-like structure involving numerous companies—many of which are competitors—could effectively make decisions.

Abrams dismisses the consortium label, asserting that while Open Standard has corporate investors, the management operates the company without a committee of hundreds. A smaller group of founding partners will oversee ownership and governance, while the wider network will be incentivized through rewards linked to their contributions to OUSD.

Coinbase, Mastercard, Shopify, Stripe, and Visa have made significant investments as the initial five founding partners, each holding an equal share. Together, they have pledged over $1 billion to enhance OUSD liquidity in the upcoming months.

"Each of these companies is going to lean in and hold OUSD on their balance sheet, or hold OUSD on-chain, or help with market-making, or engage in whatever use case makes the most sense for them," Abrams explained.

The specific investment amounts and equity stakes for each firm have not been revealed. Abrams noted that these five companies are currently the only investors in Open Standard, but he anticipates expanding the founding group to around 10 to 12 companies. Plans to establish a board of directors comprising the founders are also in the works.

Additionally, the partner network aimed at integrating OUSD has now surpassed 200 companies, with SBI Holdings from Japan, Swiss bank UBS, and fintech Jeeves being among the latest entrants.

Equity Based on Engagement

Open Standard is adopting a novel approach to stablecoin economics. Typically, stablecoin issuers generate income from the cash and securities backing their tokens. Tether retains a significant portion of this income, while Circle shares a fraction of USDC reserve revenue with distribution partners like Coinbase.

Open Standard seeks to center this relationship within its model. Abrams stated that founding partners will not receive a preferential share of revenue; instead, they will earn rewards based on the OUSD supply they generate, similar to other partners.

Much of Open Standard's equity is intended for distribution over the next four to five years to both founders and network partners based on their contributions to the growth of OUSD. "The overwhelming majority of our cap table is going to be allocated back to founders and non-founders based on how they assist in growing the network," Abrams emphasized.

Supply alone won’t determine equity; partners who meet a minimum threshold will also be able to earn equity based on their OUSD supply and transaction activity, incentivizing them to promote the token rather than simply holding it. The firm did not reveal the specific threshold partners need to reach to qualify for benefits.

This model emerges as more financial institutions test out jointly backed stablecoins. For instance, Qivalis is backed by 37 European banks working on a euro stablecoin, while 21 financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citi, Goldman Sachs, and UBS, plan to create a company that issues stablecoins for payments and digital asset transactions.

Abrams believes the potential extends far beyond simply taking market share from USDT or USDC, highlighting opportunities in card settlements, foreign exchange, and cross-border transactions where stablecoins can facilitate quicker and more frequent money movement than traditional banking systems.

Open USD will also eliminate minting and burning fees, which could provide significant savings for companies transferring large sums in and out of stablecoins. Dan Romero, chief business officer at Tempo, expressed confidence in achieving approximately $1 billion in OUSD within the next few months, potentially escalating to over $10 billion by 2027 and possibly exceeding $100 billion in the coming years. Open Standard plans to deploy OUSD across various blockchains, with Tempo aiming to establish itself as the leading liquidity pool, he noted.

Additionally, Abrams indicated that Open Standard is witnessing a growing demand for stablecoins in various currencies. Notably, Bridge, the company he co-founded, issued a euro-backed token for Revolut, reflecting the interest from financial institutions for currencies beyond the dollar.

“It's purely going to be driven by demands from the network, and I can tell you the network already demands other stablecoins,” he remarked.

Looking ahead a decade, Abrams envisions Open USD's infrastructure processing "hundreds of trillions of dollars a year" as stablecoins become integral to global money movement.