Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, and Coinbase Pool $1 Billion Behind New Stablecoin Open USD
Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, and Coinbase have collectively committed $1 billion in liquidity to the Open USD stablecoin, launched on September 30, 2026. This new stablecoin aims to maintain a value of $1 and shares its profits with partners, unlike other established stablecoins like Tether, USDC, and RLUSD. The company behind OUSD, Open Standard, reports that its partner network has grown to over 200 companies, up from 140 in June.
The Open USD stablecoin is issued by Bridge, acquired by Stripe for $1.1 billion in 2024, and managed by BlackRock, Lead Bank, and BNY Mellon. OUSD's profit-sharing structure could incentivize Coinbase, Visa, and other partners to favor it over USDC, potentially pulling more business away from Circle. Tether's USDT has a market cap of around $184 billion, while USDC stands at about $74 billion, and RLUSD has reached approximately $2.5 billion.
USDC faces the biggest risk from Open USD, as Circle already splits reserve income with its distributors, and Coinbase benefits from USDC revenue and is also an OUSD partner. Visa's involvement adds pressure, as the company has been working on settlement programs using USDC, while it now supports a rival that shares its revenue. Ripple's RLUSD also faces a different set of challenges, as OUSD's partners are already accommodating institutions for cross-border transactions.