Circle shares fell more than 16% after announcing the launch of OpenUSD, analysts said concerns were excessive

Circle shares fell more than 16% on Tuesday after OpenStandard announced the launch of a new stablecoin OpenUSD (OUSD) on July 1. The stablecoin is backed by more than 140 companies including Visa, Stripe, Mastercard, BlackRock and Coinbase, and the market is concerned that it may pose competitive pressure on Circle's USDC. However, analysts at William Blair believed the sell-off was an overreaction and reiterated their "outperform" rating on Circle shares, saying the decline could instead provide buying opportunities. The agency believes that Circle has a first-mover advantage, deep liquidity and mature payment infrastructure in the stablecoin field, and is still in a favorable position even in the face of high-profile competitors such as OUSD. CircleCEO JeremyAllaire said the company welcomes competition and will continue to expand the USDC ecosystem. Analysts also believe that the stablecoin market as a whole is still expanding rapidly, and new entrants may not only snatch USDC share, but may also drive the adoption rate of the entire industry.