Will Open USD, Driven by a Revenue-Sharing Model, Shake Circle's Stablecoin Dominance?

On July 15, 2026, CoinShares released a report defining Open USD (OUSD) as the strongest threat ever to Circle's USDC. Despite Circle recently receiving approval to establish a U.S. national trust bank and building a regulatory fortress, the OUSD consortium is attacking the industry's profit structure by sharing reserve revenue with its partners.

OUSD is led by the 'Open Standard' consortium, which consists of over 140 partners including Visa, Mastercard, and Coinbase. This partner governance model signals a fundamental shift in the stablecoin market, moving away from the traditional approach of Circle or Tether, where issuers monopolized all profits.

The CoinShares report warned that OUSD would exert direct pressure on Circle's business model ahead of its full-scale debut in 2026. OUSD's structure, which distributes reserve revenue to distribution partners rather than the issuer, was identified as a key factor threatening Circle's profit margins.

Open USD's partner governance model signifies a structural shift that ends the era of stablecoin issuers monopolizing profits and transfers value to the distribution layer.

OUSD, led by Open Standard, operates under the leadership of CEO Zach Abrams and has an independent operating system. In contrast to Circle's single-issuer structure, this model seeks to secure both network scalability and reliability with the participation of giants like Google and Stripe.

Strategic Combination of Regulatory Circumvention and Revenue Sharing

OUSD cleverly evades GENIUS regulations that prohibit stablecoin issuers from paying interest directly to holders. By distributing revenue to distribution partners such as fintech companies or exchanges instead of end-users, it is designed to allow partners to monetize stablecoins without violating direct revenue prohibition clauses.

• Transition from an issuer-monopoly model to a partner governance model
• Securing an extensive distribution network with over 140 global companies participating
• Providing economic incentives to distribution partners while maintaining regulatory compliance

Circle still maintains its defensive wall based on strong institutional infrastructure and trading volume. According to an announcement on July 7, 2026, USDC's cumulative trading volume exceeded $90 trillion, demonstrating overwhelming market dominance by accounting for approximately 79% of on-chain value settlements.

Additionally, on July 10, 2026, Circle obtained final approval from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish Circle National Trust. This signifies that Circle has solidified its legal status to operate dollar rails under federal supervision, which is expected to be a powerful weapon against OUSD's partner network offensive.

Despite concerns over intensifying competition, Circle's stock price (CRCL) rose 4.31% from the previous day to approximately $64.62 on July 15, 2026. Investors are weighing Circle's current growth against future competitive threats, noting that Q1 2026 revenue reached $151 million, a 24% increase year-over-year.

In the second half of 2026, the stablecoin market is expected to reach a turning point, shifting from a competition over "safety" to one over "distribution economics." A key point to watch for future market share reorganization will be how many of Circle's existing partners migrate to OUSD's revenue-sharing model.