Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) on Tuesday crashed 17% after a 140-company coalition launched Open USD, a rival stablecoin designed to split reserve yield with distribution partners instead of keeping it.
Why OUSD Is A Direct Threat To Circle's Business Model Circle makes roughly 99% of its revenue from interest earned on USDC (CRYPTO: USDC) reserves.
Open USD targets that exact revenue stream by paying yield directly to its distribution partners, which include Visa (NYSE:V), Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN), and BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), the same companies that currently distribute USDC.
Coinbase is one of USDC's biggest distributors and now backs a direct rival that pays them a cut of the revenue Circle currently keeps, giving those partners a financial incentive to push OUSD over USDC going forward.
Circle's CEO Fired Back, Pointing To USDC's Dominant Network Effects Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire responded on X, arguing USDC already controls 80% of all dollar stablecoin transactions on blockchains in Q1 2026, processing nearly $30 trillion, while all other stablecoins combined handled less than 0.5%.
