The business that created the decentralised finance (DeFi) protocol called Usual Labs said in a statement on Wednesday that it has funded $7 million and obtained a commitment of $75 million in total value locked (TVL) for the launch of its stablecoin, USD0.
More than a hundred companies contributed to the French company’s fundraising efforts, including two of the top co-investors, IOSG and Kraken Ventures. GSR, Mantle, Starkware, Flowdesk, Avid3, Bing Ventures, Breed, Hypersphere, Kima Ventures, Psalion, Public Works, and X Ventures were among the other investors.
Investments totaling $75 million in TVL come from both the company’s direct investors and people and organisations in the ecosystem.
Usual Labs stated that the funds raised will enable them to get ready for the second quarter pre-launch of its USD0 stablecoin on the Ethereum mainnet. According to Usual, this entails finishing the testnet phase, forming alliances with prominent figures in the sector, and conducting smart contract audits to ensure the security and effectiveness of the protocol.
Permissionless stablecoin USD0 is backed by physical assets. The yields produced by these assets will be distributed to coin holders as compensation. It is one of several new stablecoins introduced in a market that is getting more and more competitive.
The top three stablecoins, DAI (DAI), USD Coin (USDC), and tether (USDT), now have a combined supply of $141.4 billion, the most since May 2022. With a market share of more than 90%, these three stablecoins are in charge.
“There is fierce competition in the stablecoin market. According to Pierre Person, CEO and co-founder of Usual, “this competitive landscape necessitated Usual to innovate to provide a distinctly different approach from our competitors.” Person stated, “We at Usual are committed to providing a stablecoin that maintains a higher level of security for its users, with a strong belief that both value and governance should be in the hands of the users.”
According to a study paper published by Bernstein last week, stablecoins are being embraced for cross-border settlements, with payments organisations, fintech firms, and consumer platforms among the early users.