Stripe's OUSD stablecoin went live on Ethereum, Solana, Base and Tempo on September 30, backed by Coinbase, Mastercard and Visa. The dollar-pegged token challenges the duopoly held by Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC, though USDT's offshore dominance looks hardest to crack.
Stripe-issued OpenUSD, or OUSD, went live across Ethereum, Solana, Base and Tempo on the 30th of September, taking direct aim at the stablecoin duopoly held by Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC. The token is fully backed one-to-one to the U.S. dollar.
Coinbase, Mastercard and Visa back the launch
More than 140 partners backed OUSD when Stripe first announced the project in June. The new stablecoin now carries support from Coinbase and three major payment networks — Stripe, Mastercard and Visa.
According to Stripe CEO Patrick Collison: "most yield is shared directly with partners rather than being internalized by the stablecoin issuer". Stripe is adopting OUSD in a number of core product flows, he said.
Coinbase's involvement stands out because the exchange has an agreement with Circle and earns most of USDC's generated yield from its reserves — yet OUSD is a direct rival to USDC. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire downplayed the challenge, citing USDC's network effects.
Mastercard and Visa stay neutral on the shift
Jorn Lambert, Mastercard's chief product officer, does not see the launch as winner-takes-all. He framed it instead as a step toward a more connected, multi-chain "multi-money" future in which bank deposits, card networks, digital assets and stablecoins operate within the same financial system. Visa has adopted a similar neutral, multi-coin approach.
Stripe itself is a major payments integrator, and it previously tried to buy out PayPal and its stablecoin stack — a sign the company could pursue USDT and USDC market share through OUSD.
USDC's market share is the nearer target
USDC currently holds a 54% market share in regulated payments and consumer rails, making it OUSD's most immediate target. That share could come under pressure if Stripe and its partners lean on their distribution network.
USDT, however, remains entrenched offshore as an inflation hedge in emerging markets — territory that regulated stablecoins, including USDC, have found challenging to penetrate. OUSD could rival USDC on regulated payment rails, but it may face an uphill task against USDT.
Source: AMBCrypto
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