Circle shares tumble as Open USD stablecoin unveiled

Circle Internet Group shares fell more than 16% on Tuesday after Open Standard announced plans for Open USD, a new US dollar‑backed stablecoin supported by a consortium of more than 140 firms.

Open Standard said Open USD will launch later this year. The consortium includes financial, technology and crypto firms such as Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, Bank of New York Mellon, Coinbase, Google, IBM, Klarna, American Express, Standard Chartered, BBVA, DBS, Shopify, SoFi, Adyen, Gemini, Galaxy, Ripple, Crypto.com and Polygon. Circle, Tether and PayPal are not part of the group.

Open Standard said users will be able to mint and redeem Open USD at no cost. The group also said nearly all income generated by the reserves backing the token — after a small management fee and operational costs — will be distributed to participating companies that adopt and help expand the network. That structure differs from the approaches used by Circle and Tether, which retain most reserve income.

Investors reacted immediately. Shares of Coinbase also fell after the announcement. USDC remains one of the largest dollar‑pegged stablecoins, with about $73.6 billion in circulation. USDC and Tether’s USDT together account for roughly 80% of the more than $300 billion global stablecoin market. Circle and Coinbase share revenue tied to USDC’s reserve assets; revenue related to USDC is a significant part of Coinbase’s subscription and services segment, which made up 44% of the company’s first‑quarter revenue.

Jeremy Allaire, Circle’s chief executive, wrote on X that USDC “remains the most trusted, widely adopted, institutional‑ready stablecoin in the world,” and said the company welcomes competition. A Coinbase spokesperson said, “More issuers, more use cases, and more distribution means more people using stablecoins. USDC remains a cornerstone of our platform.” Patrick Witt, executive director of the President’s Council of Advisers for Digital Assets, described the launch as “another example of how clear rules of the road can unlock massive value.”

Lawmakers are advancing federal rules for stablecoins. The GENIUS Act set standards for reserves and licensing, and the CLARITY Act is moving toward a Senate vote. Open Standard said it will publish technical and governance details as the project moves toward launch.