Circle and Sony team up to bring USDC to Soneium

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Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, and Sony Block Solutions Labs, the blockchain arm of tech giant Sony, have announced a strategic collaboration to integrate and bring USDC to Soneium, Sony’s Ethereum layer-2 blockchain.

According to Circle’s press release, the partnership aims to establish bridged USDC as a primary token for value exchange on Soneium, using Circle’s USDC Bridged standard. This specification enables the implementation of a bridge form of USDC on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible blockchains, serving as a proxy for native USDC held on Ethereum.

Recently launched in August 2024, Soneium is a public Tier 2 blockchain developed by Sony Block Solutions Labs, a joint venture between Sony Group Corporation and Startale Labs. The platform is designed as a versatile, general-purpose blockchain ecosystem to support diverse needs across various verticals and serve users globally.

Jun Watanabe, president of Sony Block Solutions Labs, highlighted the collaboration’s potential to redefine the digital entertainment and finance sectors.

“This partnership aligns with our vision to create a more interconnected and efficient digital ecosystem,” says Watanabe.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire says the partnership is significant in that it furthers the company’s efforts to adopt stablecoins while empowering creators through Web3 experiences.

Allaire claims that through the partnership they hope to “re-imagine how creativity and innovation are supported in the digital age”.

Future standards and upgrades

The bridged USDC integration into Soneium is expected to enable seamless, secure and borderless transactions, fostering a global economy built on decentralized technologies. Following Circle’s standard implementation process, Soneium maintains the option for a future upgrade to native USDC issuance.

This collaboration comes as Circle continues to expand its presence in the stablecoin market. As the second largest stablecoin issuer in the world, Circle’s USDC has a circulating supply of $35.7 billion, representing a 21% market share. The stablecoin supply is up 47% year-to-date, although it remains 36% below its June 2022 peak of $56 billion.

The partnership also follows recent developments in Sony’s blockchain initiatives. In early September, Samsung Next, Samsung’s investment arm, announced a strategic investment in Startale Labs, Sony’s L2 blockchain developer. In addition, Soneium has formed partnerships with other prominent blockchain companies, including Astar, Transak, Alchemy, Chainlink, Optimism, and The Graph.

In April 2024, Circle extended its Web3 services to Solana, enhancing USDC’s integration options for businesses.

Earlier this year in February, Moonwell enabled cross-chain USDC lending in Ethereum ecosystems.

In early April 2024, Circle introduced support for USDC smart contracts to facilitate blockchain transactions for BlackRock BUIDL holders.

Last month, Circle announced plans to bring NFC contactless USDC transactions to the iPhone using advanced Apple technologies.

In January 2024, Circle issued its USDC stablecoin on the Celo network to improve RWA utilities in developing regions.

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