A new stablecoin issuer called Open Standard is entering the market with a business model designed to challenge incumbents Tether and Circle, promising to hand the bulk of its equity to the partners who help expand its dollar-pegged token, according to CEO Zach Abrams.
A Different Approach to Ownership
Open Standard's flagship product, Open USD, aims to distinguish itself less through the mechanics of the token itself and more through how the company shares the value it creates. Abrams said the "overwhelming majority" of the firm's equity will be distributed over time to the partners and participants who contribute to growing the stablecoin's adoption and circulation.
That structure marks a departure from the models used by market leaders. Tether and Circle, which dominate the stablecoin sector, retain the profits generated from the reserves backing their tokens — largely interest earned on holdings such as U.S. Treasuries. Open Standard is instead pitching a framework where the upside is shared among those who help drive usage.
The overwhelming majority of the company's equity will go to the partners who help the stablecoin grow.
Building Money, Not Just a Token
Abrams framed the project as an effort to "build money" rather than simply launch another dollar-denominated asset. The idea is that a stablecoin gains real utility only when a broad network of partners integrates and circulates it, and that those participants should be rewarded for the network effects they create.
The launch arrives at a moment of intense competition and heightened regulatory attention around stablecoins, which have become a foundational piece of crypto market infrastructure. Issuers are racing to lock in partnerships with exchanges, payment platforms and other distributors that can put their tokens into the hands of users.
Whether Open Standard's equity-sharing pitch can lure partners away from the deeply entrenched offerings of Tether and Circle remains an open question. The incumbents benefit from massive liquidity, widespread integrations and strong brand recognition that any challenger will need to overcome.
Key elements of the Open USD strategy include:
- Distributing most company equity to growth partners over time
- Positioning the token as "money" built through network participation
- Directly targeting the dominance of Tether and Circle