Introducing Open USD: A Stablecoin Built for Global Money Movement
On June 30, 2026, the independent stablecoin alliance Open Standard announced the launch of Open USD, a new stablecoin designed specifically for global money movement. Stablecoins have rapidly gained adoption due to their speed, cost efficiency, and programmability, with transaction volumes approaching those of the ACH network. However, businesses still face significant hurdles: high minting and redemption fees at scale, inability to benefit from reserve earnings, and dependence on third-party issuers' roadmaps. Open USD introduces three key design principles to address these issues.
Three Core Design Principles: Scale, Earnings, and Governance
Built for scale. Businesses can mint and redeem Open USD at no cost and without artificial volume limits. Earn by default. Partners receive all earnings from Open USD's reserves, minus a small management fee covering operational costs. Govern collaboratively. Open USD is operated by Open Standard, an independent company with a board composed of Open USD partners, ensuring decisions serve the collective interest rather than a single entity. Zach Abrams, Founding CEO of Open Standard, stated: 'Existing stablecoins have strengths, but businesses need something open, low-cost, high-throughput, and aligned with their interests. We are thrilled to bring together over 140 businesses to launch Open USD, a stablecoin built for the internet economy.'
Over 140 Partners: From Payment Giants to Traditional Banks
The list of partners spans multiple industries, including payments (Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, Fiserv, Adyen, Cloudflare, Corpay, Jack Henry, Klarna, Affirm, Ramp, OnePay, Brex, Checkout.com, WEX, PayPay Corporation, Western Union, Nuvei, Remitly, Ria, Marqeta, MoneyGram, Nium, Worldline, Galileo, Highnote, i2C, Lithic, Thredd, Episode Six, Verituity, Félix, Taptap Send, CAL), banking (BlackRock, BNY, Standard Chartered, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Intercontinental Exchange, National Australia Bank, DBS Bank Ltd., U.S. Bank, BBVA, Mizuho Financial Group, Shinhan Financial Group, Westpac, Itaú, OCBC, ANZ, UOB, Chime, Banco Bradesco, Huntington Bank, Citizens Bank, KB Kookmin Card, Emirates NBD, Hanwha Life, Banorte, Bank Hapoalim, FNB South Africa, K Bank, SoFi, Woori Card, Absa, Kakao Bank, Samsung Card, Bank Leumi, Wenia by Grupo Cibest, Nedbank, Isbank, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank ADIB, Banco de Crédito del Perú, Mashreq, RAK Bank, Hana Card, Hyundai Card, BCcard, Cross River, Grupo Aval, Davivienda, The Bancorp, Pathward, Banca Transilvania, Nonghyup Card, Neo Financial, Maya Bank, Netbank, Freedom Bank Kazakhstan, Lead Bank, Kapital, MAX), technology (Google, Samsung Electronics, IBM, Shopify, Mercado Libre, Mercado Pago, Infosys, DoorDash, Wix, Grab, Rakuten Group), and crypto infrastructure (Coinbase, Tempo, Bybit, Solana, Base, OKX, Ripple, Crypto.com, Fireblocks, Gemini, MetaMask, Aave, eToro, Galaxy, Dunamu, Ledger, MoonPay, Anchorage Digital, Digital Asset, Trust Wallet, Meow, Morpho, Ether.Fi, Lightspark, zerohash, Bitso, Bridge, Rain, BVNK, Mesh, Privy, Bitget Wallet, StraitsX, Yellow Card, Reap, Brale, RedotPay, Immersve, Stellar, Polygon, Aptos Labs, Plasma, KAST, Blossom, Lemon).
Industry Leaders: Stablecoins as Shared Infrastructure
Executives from key partners shared their perspectives. Samara Cohen, Global Head of Market Development at BlackRock: 'A stablecoin with neutral governance and shared economics is a unique combination that could unlock the next phase of digital assets growth. We anticipate stablecoins may reach $1.5 trillion by 2030 and look forward to exploring ways for BNY to support Open USD.' Carolyn Weinberg, Chief Product and Innovation Officer at BNY: 'A stablecoin with neutral governance and shared economics is a unique combination.' Jack Forestell, Chief Product and Strategy Officer at Visa: 'Visa is bringing the same discipline, risk standards, and operational rigor we apply to our global network to Open USD, building the trust layer for stablecoins within the broader financial system.' Will Gaybrick, President of Technology and Business at Stripe: 'Businesses need a stablecoin designed for the 2040 economy. Stripe will make Open USD the default stablecoin for businesses running on our platform.' Rohit Mishra, VP Product, Payments, Tax, and Cross-Border at Shopify: 'When the ecosystem builds around stablecoins together, their power for merchants increases greatly.' Michael Shaulov, CEO of Fireblocks: 'Participation in Open Standard signals industry consolidation around shared, regulated infrastructure.' Andy Fang, Co-founder of DoorDash: 'What sets Open USD apart is it's genuinely open—no single company controls it.' Manuel Godoy, CEO of Félix: 'Stablecoins become useful as infrastructure that makes money movement work better behind the scenes.'
Launch Timeline and Vision: Coming in H2 2026
Open USD is expected to go live in the second half of 2026. Open Standard invites any interested business to join the consortium. The launch marks a significant evolution in the stablecoin landscape, shifting from single-issuer tokens to an open, collaborative ecosystem designed to drive adoption in enterprise payments, cross-border remittances, and digital asset settlements. (Source: Open Standard official blog)