Circle, the issuer of the popular stablecoin USDC, has made a groundbreaking announcement. On September 15, the fintech firm revealed its new collaboration with Sony Block Solutions Labs.

This partnership will focus on expanding USDC adoption on Sony's layer-2 blockchain, Soneium. The initiative aims to integrate Circle's Bridged USDC Standard and establish USDC as one of Soneium's primary tokens for value exchange.

A New Era in Web3

Circle emphasized the significance of this collaboration in its official statement. 'This marks a significant milestone to set the stage for a new era of creativity in the Web3 space,' the firm declared.

Sony Block Solutions Labs developed Soneium, a public Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, and launched in August 2024. The blockchain is a joint venture between Sony Group Corporation and Startale Labs. Their mission is to build a new network infrastructure using distributed ledger technology.

Bridged USDC Standard

The Bridged USDC Standard is a specification and process for deploying a bridged form of the stablecoin on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchains. This asset 'serves as a proxy' for the native USDC on Ethereum. It enables developers building on L2 chains to access digital dollar payments.

Sony Block Solutions Labs Chairman Jun Watanabe commented on the collaboration, saying it 'aligns ideally with our vision of creating a more interconnected and efficient digital ecosystem.'

Empowering Creators

Circle's CEO, Jeremy Allaire, also shared his enthusiasm. 'This collaboration marks a significant milestone for Circle's mission to accelerate the adoption of our stablecoins and blockchain technology and empower creators to flourish through secure, user-friendly Web3 experiences,' he said.

This partnership follows other significant moves in the blockchain space. In early September, Samsung's investment division, Samsung Next, announced a strategic investment in Startale Labs, Sony's L2 blockchain developer.

Expanding Partnerships

Additionally, Soneium has forged partnerships with other major players in the blockchain industry, including Astar, Alchemy, Chainlink, Optimism, and The Graph.

Circle, the world's second-largest stablecoin issuer, currently has a circulating supply of $35.7 billion, giving it a market share of 21%. The supply of USDC has increased by 47% since the beginning of this year. However, it remains down 36% from its peak of $56 billion in June 2022.

Future Prospects

Dante Disparte, Circle's chief strategy officer and head of global policy, expressed optimism about the future of stablecoins.

In a recent interview with Cointelegraph, he stated, 'We are confident that there will be mainstream adoption of stablecoins as the money for the internet age.'

This collaboration with Sony Block Solutions Labs is a step forward in that direction, promising exciting developments in the Web3 space.