Popular self-custodial wallet MetaMask will be launching its native USD-pegged stablecoin, MetaMask USD (mUSD).
This makes MetaMask, developed by Ethereum studio ConsenSys, the first self-custodial wallet to achieve this.
MetaMask USD is being launched through a strategic partnership with companies including Bridge and MO.
The stablecoin is issued on Bridge, a Stripe-owned stablecoin issuance company, and it is minted via MO’s decentralized infrastructure. The team behind the stablecoin plans to introduce some incentives to reward early users.
According to MetaMask, mUSD will be fully backed 1:1 by “high-quality, highly-liquid dollar equivalent assets,” including U.S. cash and short-duration Treasuries. Ajay Mittal, vice president of product strategy at MetaMask, emphasized that these types of assets produce yield.
“MetaMask benefits from that yield, and in turn, it enables us to improve the user experience across the stack — from potentially lower costs and more seamless integrations,” Mittal noted.
This mUSD stablecoin will also enjoy real-time transparency and cross-chain composability via MO’s liquidity network.
MetaMask is touting the improved experience that the USD-pegged stablecoin will potentially unlock across decentralized finance (DeFi).
The team plans to debut the mUSD stablecoin later this year on both the Ethereum and Consensys’s Linea network. There will be deep integrations across Linea’s DeFi stack.
This will cut across lending markets to decentralized exchanges and custodial platforms, to seed liquidity and reduce onboarding friction.
Once the launch is up, mUSD users will be allowed to on-ramp, hold, swap, transfer, and bridge the stablecoin inside MetaMask.
Over time, likely by year-end, MetaMask will allow users to spend mUSD via the MetaMask Card at merchants that accept Mastercard.
MetaMask has made this move at a time when the stablecoin ecosystem is thriving with the help of clear regulatory frameworks like the US GENIUS Act.
The sector recently recorded almost $1 trillion in monthly onchain volume. Donald Trump’s family DeFi project, World Liberty Financial, just reported the minting of $205 million worth of its USD1 stablecoin, taking the total supply to a record $2.4 billion
This was after Fed Governor Christopher Waller delivered a pro-crypto speech that highlighted the role of stablecoins.
He praised stablecoins, stating that they have the potential to maintain and extend the role of the dollar internationally.
