Coinbase, Visa and Mastercard say Open USD is not meant to replace USDC

Open USD’s launch triggered concern that it could directly challenge Circle’s USDC, a reaction that wiped out tens of billions of dollars from Circle’s market value, according to Odaily. Executives from Coinbase, Visa and Mastercard later pushed back on that reading, saying the companies involved are pursuing a multi-stablecoin and multi-chain approach instead of backing a single replacement asset. In their description, Open USD should be viewed as an additional network rather than a substitute for USDC. Analysts also said current commitments from several Open USD partners remain light. They argued that execution and the existing liquidity already held by USDC and USDT will matter more than the size of the Open USD alliance itself. The comments frame Open USD as an expansion of stablecoin payment rails, not a direct bid to displace the incumbents.