Payments Heavyweights Launch Open USD Stablecoin With Equity-Sharing Model

A consortium of major payments companies has launched Open USD, a dollar-pegged stablecoin backed by Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Coinbase, and Shopify. The token went live on multiple blockchain platforms and has over $1 billion in committed liquidity.

The equity-sharing model behind Open USD aims to distribute ownership across its network, rather than concentrating it with a single issuer. Founding partners won't receive special revenue shares, but will instead earn rewards based on OUSD supply they generate.

The project's CEO, Zach Abrams, said the majority of the company's equity will be distributed over four to five years to founders and network partners based on their contributions to OUSD supply and transaction activity.