Circle isn’t taking chances.
Days after Hyperliquid voted to launch USDH — a native stablecoin designed to funnel yield back into the protocol — Circle dropped its counterpunch: native USDC on Hyperliquid, complete with CCTP V2 for seamless cross-chain transfers across 14+ blockchains. [RELEASE]
For those catching up: last week, Hyperliquid voted for USDH, a “yield-sharing” stablecoin that could redirect ~$200M a year (10% of Circle’s revenue) from USDC reserves back to the ecosystem. Paxos, Agora, and others battled to be issuer. Native Markets won.
Now Circle is making sure USDC stays sticky. Native issuance, fiat on/off ramps, institutional safeguards, all designed to erase USDH’s tech edge and force the fight to be about one thing only: economics.
This isn’t just Circle defending revenue. It’s the start of a bigger trend: chains demanding yield, issuers forced to share, and stablecoins becoming the battleground for who owns the payment rails.
Let’s unpack.
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