Samsung Electronics, Shinhan, Dunamu among Korean firms joining Visa-BlackRock stablecoin project

Open USD set for official launch this year

A new stablecoin project backed by global financial and technology giants including Visa, BlackRock and Stripe has drawn in a wave of South Korean companies — among them Shinhan Financial Group, Samsung Electronics and Dunamu. The consortium, which now counts more than 140 firms worldwide, is expected to reshape the competitive landscape by mounting a direct challenge to Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC), the two dominant stablecoins in the market.

The stablecoin consortium Open Standard announced Monday (local time) that it will launch a new stablecoin, Open USD (OUSD), before the end of this year. <style ref="s1">Korean participants confirmed in the project's membership list include Shinhan Financial Group, Kakao Bank, K bank, KB Kookmin Card, Samsung Card, Hyundai Card, BC Card, NH NongHyup Card, Samsung Electronics, Dunamu, Hanwha Life Insurance, Hana Card and Woori Card.</style>

On the international side, more than 140 financial, technology and virtual asset companies have joined, including Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, Coinbase, Google, Shopify and DoorDash. Tether and Circle, which together dominate the current stablecoin market, are not part of the consortium.

[Screenshot from the Open Standard website]

Open USD is designed to let companies issue and redeem the stablecoin at no cost, with no cap on transaction size. Most of the yield generated from managing the reserve assets will be distributed to participating companies after a small operating fee. Rather than having a single company lead operations, member firms will form a board and make decisions collectively.

Jack Abrams, co-founder and CEO of Open Standard, said Open USD is "a stablecoin designed for the internet economy — built by the businesses that grow it," adding that the project "will be designed by the companies that use it and grown together with them."

Industry observers see the project as a serious challenge to Tether and Circle, which have long dominated the market. According to virtual asset data firm CoinGecko, as of April, Tether's USDT held about 62 percent of the total stablecoin market, while Circle's USDC accounted for about 25 percent.

The launch of Open USD also fits into a broader trend of corporate-led stablecoin initiatives gaining momentum as the United States establishes a regulatory framework for stablecoins. Klarna has already launched its own stablecoin, while Amazon and Walmart are reportedly exploring the possibility of issuing their own.

Some in the industry see the project as a potential turning point that could shift the global market from individual issuers toward large corporate consortiums. In South Korea, the participation of Shinhan Financial, internet banks, card companies and Dunamu in global standard discussions is expected to have a significant impact on the future expansion of won-denominated stablecoins and the global payments and remittance ecosystem.

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