Coinbase backs OUSD as stablecoin revenue fight heats up

Coinbase's support for Open USD could reshape how stablecoin profits are shared, and that matters for USDC's position. The exchange is one of USDC's largest distribution channels, with more than 25% of the token's circulation, about $19 billion on average in the first quarter, held across Coinbase products. Coinbase also said Base handled 62% of global on-chain stablecoin transaction volume in the quarter.

Open USD, or OUSD, is a planned stablecoin backed by more than 140 firms including Coinbase, Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, and Google. The project says businesses will get free minting and redemption, while more of the reserve income will go to the platforms that bring users and payments volume.

That model puts pressure on Circle, which has kept the issuer-led approach behind USDC. In 2024, Circle paid Coinbase $908 million under their revenue-sharing agreement. Coinbase's stablecoin-related revenue reached about $1.35 billion in 2025, or 19% of its total revenue. Their distribution agreement is set to expire in August 2026.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire argued USDC's scale and liquidity are hard to copy. He said USDC processed nearly $30 trillion in on-chain volume in the first quarter of 2026, equal to 80% of dollar-denominated stablecoin transactions across major blockchains. Analysts still question whether a large consortium can move fast enough, build liquidity, and avoid regulatory scrutiny.