Viewpoint: OUSD Could Directly Challenge USDC's Distribution Model and Profitability

BlockBeats News, July 15th, CoinShares stated that the stablecoin project Open USD, driven by a banking-backed alliance, plans to distribute reserve earnings to participating partners rather than primarily holding them in reserve, which may directly impact Circle's USDC distribution model and profit margin. This mechanism could raise the operating costs of the USDC circulating network and exert more substantial competitive pressure on Circle after its launch in the second half of 2026.

However, CoinShares also pointed out that Open USD has not yet been officially launched, and key details such as reserve structure and fee models have not been disclosed; in comparison, USDC still possesses advantages such as liquidity, exchange platform access, integration into decentralized finance and payment scenarios. Therefore, Open USD can currently be seen as a credible challenger to USDC, but its actual impact remains to be seen.

On July 1st, Open Standard announced the launch of a new stablecoin, Open USD (OUSD), for global fund transfers, stating that over 140 companies have joined the ecosystem, including Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, American Express, BlackRock, BNY, DBS, Coinbase, OKX, MetaMask, Aave, Ripple, Fireblocks, Solana, Polygon, and other financial, payment, and crypto industry institutions. Open USD is built on three core design principles: supporting zero-cost corporate participation, large-scale minting and redemption; returning all reserve asset earnings to partners after deducting a small management fee; governed jointly by an independent company, Open Standard, and a board of partners, rather than controlled by a single issuing entity.