Coinbase Joins Rival Open USD Consortium, Puts Circle Deal on the Table

Coinbase has signed on as a launch partner of the Open USD consortium, a newly formed stablecoin initiative counting more than 140 members including Stripe, BlackRock, Visa, and Mastercard, according to Crypto Briefing. The move comes as Coinbase simultaneously prepares to renegotiate its revenue-sharing agreement with Circle, the issuer of USDC, one of the most profitable partnerships in digital assets.

News of Coinbase’s involvement in the rival consortium sent Circle’s stock down roughly 17%, Crypto Briefing reported, as investors weighed the implications for a company that relies heavily on its distribution partnership with Coinbase.

The deal that made Coinbase rich

Under the current revenue-sharing agreement, established in 2023, Coinbase keeps 100% of the interest income generated by USDC reserves held on its own platform, and takes 50% of income from USDC held elsewhere. Circle has reportedly paid Coinbase more than $908 million in distribution fees under this arrangement, according to Crypto Briefing, with those fees accounting for more than half of Circle’s total revenue.

USDC currently has a market capitalization of approximately $74 billion, making it the second-largest stablecoin, and is issued solely by Circle following the earlier dissolution of the CENTRE Consortium. The existing agreement between Coinbase and Circle is set for renegotiation in August 2026.

What sets Open USD apart

The Open USD consortium, announced on June 30, 2026, imposes no mint or burn fees and offers majority reserve income sharing to its partners by default. That structure differs from Circle’s issuer-centric USDC model, in which Circle mints the coins, manages the reserves, and retains the bulk of the economic upside, Crypto Briefing noted.

If Open USD’s default terms hold, Coinbase could potentially earn comparable or better economics by promoting the consortium’s stablecoin instead of USDC, giving it added leverage heading into the August renegotiation with Circle.

Circle’s narrowing options

Circle now faces a distribution partner that is both diversifying into a competing product and about to renegotiate the terms of their existing relationship, according to Crypto Briefing. With more than half of its revenue tied to distribution fees paid to that single partner, the company’s stock reaction reflects investor concern over how much leverage Coinbase now holds.

Crypto Briefing suggests Circle may need to offer more competitive revenue-sharing terms to distribution partners going forward, or lean further into regulatory positioning as stablecoin legislation such as the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act continues to be debated in Washington.

What it means for the stablecoin market

For Coinbase, backing Open USD represents a diversification away from heavy dependence on USDC-linked revenue. The August 2026 renegotiation with Circle is expected to be an early test of whether the issuer-centric stablecoin model, which has underpinned USDC’s dominance, can hold up against a consortium approach that shares reserve income more broadly among distribution partners.

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