BBVA is moving deeper into the stablecoin race, this time through a global project that looks much bigger than a normal bank experiment.
The Spanish banking group has joined more than 140 international companies and financial institutions backing Open USD, a planned dollar-backed stablecoin. The project brings together a strange but powerful mix of names: banks, payment giants, crypto firms, fintech players, and technology companies. Visa, Mastercard, Coinbase, BlackRock, Google, Solana, and others are part of the initiative.
BBVA is reportedly the only Spanish bank involved in the project, which gives the move a little extra weight. This is not just another crypto side project. It is a sign that large financial institutions are starting to treat stablecoins as real payment infrastructure.
Stablecoins Are Getting the Attention Banks Once Gave to Blockchain Pilots
Crypto markets have had plenty of loud moments, but stablecoins are becoming the quieter story banks actually care about.
The reason is simple. Stablecoins are designed to hold a steady value, usually by being tied to a fiat currency such as the US dollar or euro. That makes them less about wild price moves and more about utility. Cross-border payments. Settlement. Tokenized financial assets. Money moving outside normal banking hours.
For banks, that matters.
Traditional payment rails can still be slow, expensive, and limited by cut-off times. Stablecoins offer a version of money that can move around the clock. That is why the sector has become harder for major institutions to ignore.
Open USD Wants Scale From Day One
Open USD will be managed by Open Standard, an independent company with a board made up of the project’s partners. The stablecoin is expected to launch this year, with participating companies planning to integrate it into their own systems after release.
That detail is important. A stablecoin usually needs distribution more than hype. If more than 140 partners actually plug Open USD into payments, fintech apps, corporate systems, crypto platforms, and financial services products, it could enter the market with serious reach from the start.
The project also has a business model that may appeal to its members. Stablecoin issuers often generate income from the reserves backing their tokens. In Open USD’s case, reserve earnings are expected to be shared among the project partners, after a small management fee for operational costs.
BBVA Sees Stablecoins as a 24/7 Money Movement Tool
BBVA’s involvement fits into a broader shift inside the banking industry. Stablecoins are no longer being viewed only as crypto trading instruments. They are increasingly being pitched as a new layer for financial transactions.
Alicia Pertusa, BBVA’s head of Alliances and Innovation at CIB, said the bank sees stablecoins as a way to change how money moves for retail and corporate clients, making financial transactions smoother and available 24/7.
That is the bank-friendly version of the stablecoin argument. Not “crypto will replace banks.” More like: banks may use tokenized money to modernize their own systems before someone else does it for them.
BBVA Is Also Involved in Europe’s Stablecoin Race
Open USD is not BBVA’s only stablecoin move.
The bank had previously explored launching its own euro-backed stablecoin, but later shifted toward Qivalis, a European consortium focused on a euro stablecoin. Qivalis includes dozens of European financial institutions and is expected to launch its euro-linked token in the second half of the year.
That puts BBVA in an interesting position. It is working on a dollar-backed international project through Open USD while also participating in Europe’s attempt to build a stronger euro stablecoin ecosystem.
This two-track approach says a lot about where the market is heading. Banks do not want to miss the dollar stablecoin boom, but European institutions also know they cannot leave tokenized money completely dominated by US dollar assets.
Open USD Will Challenge Tether and Circle, But That Is Not Easy
The big target is obvious.
Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC still dominate the stablecoin market. They have liquidity, trust among users, exchange support, and years of market presence. Any new project trying to challenge them has to solve a brutal problem: why would users switch?
Open USD’s answer seems to be institutional distribution.
Instead of starting as a crypto-native token and slowly trying to earn bank adoption, Open USD is starting with major financial and payment players already attached. That does not guarantee success, but it gives the project a different kind of market entry.
Analysts at Bernstein reportedly described Open USD as one of the first serious new competitors with enough distribution power across payments, technology, and financial services to challenge the existing stablecoin duopoly.
Europe Still Has a Stablecoin Problem
The timing also exposes a larger issue for Europe.
Most stablecoins are still tied to the US dollar. The euro stablecoin market remains tiny by comparison, even though European banks are now trying to catch up through projects such as Qivalis, Bancomat’s EUR.BANK initiative in Italy, Société Générale’s EUR CoinVertible, and other smaller efforts.
The problem is fragmentation. Different banks are joining different groups. Some are working on local projects, others are joining pan-European efforts, and a few are joining international dollar-based initiatives at the same time.
BBVA is one of those banks moving on more than one front.
That may look messy, but it is also realistic. Nobody knows yet which stablecoin model will win: bank-led, crypto-native, payment-company-led, regional, global, dollar-based, euro-based, or something else entirely.
The Stablecoin Market Is Becoming Institutional
The Open USD project shows how quickly stablecoins are being pulled into mainstream finance.
A few years ago, stablecoins were mainly discussed in crypto trading circles. Now banks, card networks, asset managers, fintech firms, and major tech companies are trying to shape the market before it becomes too important to ignore.
BBVA joining Open USD does not mean the stablecoin race is settled. Far from it.
But it does show something clearly: the next phase of digital money may not be built only by crypto companies. Banks want a seat at the table. Payment giants want one too. And with Open USD, they are not waiting quietly on the sidelines.