Circle’s announcement on Wednesday during the ConvergeSF22 Conference revealed that the company is looking to expand its stablecoin support to five more networks by early 2023. If this objective is actualized, USDC will run on Cosmos, Optimism, Arbitum, Polkadot, and NEAR.
USDC Stablecoin is pegged to the US dollar and therefore acts as a firm crypto asset assumable immune to the crypto market volatility. Joao Reginatto, Circle’s Vice President, stated that expanding USDC support to numerous blockchains allows developers, institutions, and exchanges easier access to a stable and trusted digital dollar.
The USDC support expansion plans will bring the total number of blockchains compatible with the stablecoin to fourteen. Currently, USDC runs on Solana, Ethereum, Hedera, Flow, Stellar, TRON, Polygon, and Algorand. USDC could be operable on NEAR, Optimism, Polkadot, and Arbitrum by the end of 2022, while it could launch on Cosmos by early 2023.
Circle Looks to Launch Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol for USDC
Also, another big announcement from Wednesday’s conference regards Circle’s launch of the upcoming USDC Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol. The protocol will enhance the stablecoin’s transaction process across networks. Additionally, it will help developers build apps and wallets that allow smooth transfer of USDC across blockchains.
Reginatto stated that the Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol allows USDC to serve as a universal dollar liquidity layer across blockchains, thus providing an efficient way to transport value across the cryptocurrency ecosystem. The protocol will be available on Avalanche and Ethereum before the end of 2022, while its availability on other networks will come in 2023.
USDC and USDT Retain Their Value Despite UST Crash
Tether(USDT), the USDC’s main competitor, currently operates on thirteen chains and could be available on Polygon in the coming days. The two dollar-pegged coins gained support after Terra’s UST crashed in May. The crash saw over $40 billion wiped out. UST had no asset backing but instead relied on an algorithmic relationship with LUNA to retain its dollar peg.
USDT and USDC get backed by assets monitored and audited by American financial organizations. However, this oversight has its downsides as well. Recently, Circle has faced backlash from privacy advocates unimpressed by the company’s move to freeze USDC associated with wallets linked to Tornado Cash banned by US Treasury.
