Stripe’s Bridge Launches Platform for Businesses to Create Custom Stablecoins

Payment giant Stripe unveiled a new platform on September 30, 2025, that lets any business create and manage its own stablecoin in just days.

Breaking Free from Stablecoin Giants

The new platform, called Open Issuance, solves a problem many businesses face. Companies have been building on stablecoins issued by a handful of major providers, which means they can’t control the economics, face unpredictable fees, and must follow the issuers’ roadmaps. Bridge’s platform changes this by letting businesses mint and burn tokens without limits, customize nearly every aspect of their stablecoin, and earn rewards from reserves.

“One thing is holding businesses back: they’re building on top of stablecoins issued by an external provider,” Bridge explained in their announcement. The platform handles the complex work of reserve management, security, liquidity, and compliance with the GENIUS Act, allowing businesses to focus on their customers.

First Major Customer Goes Live

Phantom, a crypto wallet with more than 15 million users, became the first major client to launch on Open Issuance. Their new stablecoin, called CASH, transforms Phantom from a simple wallet into a full money app. Users can fund their accounts instantly with a bank card, buy and sell crypto without fees on stablecoins, pay with Visa through Apple Pay or Google Pay, and send money to others.

Source: @stripe

The platform already includes several other stablecoins migrating from Bridge’s previous system. These include USDH (Hyperliquid’s native stablecoin built by Native Markets) and tokens from MetaMask, Dakota, Slash, Lava, and Takenos.

Revolutionary Liquidity Solution

Open Issuance tackles one of the biggest challenges for new stablecoins: building liquidity. The platform creates a shared network where businesses can enable their stablecoin to swap one-for-one with other Open Issuance stablecoins. As more stablecoins launch, the overall liquidity grows and strengthens the entire network.

Users holding $10 in Phantom CASH can swap it directly with $10 of USDH through an instant, on-chain transaction with no intermediary. Previously, this would require going to an exchange, converting to USD, and then purchasing the other stablecoin—racking up multiple fees along the way.

Massive Investment Behind the Platform

This launch follows Stripe’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge in February 2025, the largest crypto acquisition on record. Stripe CEO Patrick Collison described stablecoins as “room-temperature superconductors for financial services,” highlighting their potential to improve speed, coverage, and costs for global payments.

The acquisition made sense for Stripe after the company reintroduced crypto payments in April 2025. In just the first week of accepting stablecoins, Stripe processed more stablecoin volume than during its entire previous run with Bitcoin transactions. Bridge’s roughly 60-person team joined Stripe’s San Francisco headquarters to integrate the technology.

Customization Options and Financial Partners

Businesses using Open Issuance can customize which blockchains their coin supports, specific smart contract functions, and the exact mix of reserves backing their stablecoin. Reserve allocations can be balanced between cash and treasuries through partnerships with major financial institutions including BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, and Superstate. Bridge also offers tools to increase adoption with onramps, offramps, wallets, and cards from Bridge, Privy, and Stripe.

The platform complies with new U.S. regulations, including the GENIUS Act, which requires reserves, audits, and anti-money laundering controls for payment stablecoins. This regulatory clarity came after President Donald Trump signed the landmark legislation on July 18, 2025.

Market Growth Creates Opportunity

The timing aligns with explosive growth in the stablecoin market, which surpassed $290 billion in 2025. In 2024, stablecoins moved $15.6 trillion in value—matching Visa’s transaction volume. Net inflows reached $56.5 billion over six months, with nearly $46 billion arriving in the third quarter alone.

Tether’s USDT remains the market leader, minting $19.6 billion in the last quarter, while Circle’s USDC added $12.3 billion. However, both companies keep all yield from the U.S. Treasuries backing their tokens. Tether reported $4.9 billion in net profit for the second quarter of 2025, raising questions about why stablecoin holders don’t receive any of these returns.

This creates an opening for Bridge’s platform. Businesses can now capture the economics of their own stablecoins and choose to share rewards with their users. With reserves invested in U.S. Treasuries earning 3-4%, companies have real incentive to issue their own tokens.

Standard Chartered predicts stablecoins could grow to 10% of foreign exchange transactions, up from just 1% today. Other analysts project the market could reach $2 trillion by 2028.

The Road Ahead

Bridge plans to announce more stablecoin launches in the coming weeks and will share additional details about the platform’s design. The company aims to equip builders with tools to create better financial experiences while letting them control their product vision and own their economics.

Fireblocks’ Senior Vice President of payments Ran Goldi expects to see as many as 50 new stablecoins by the end of 2025, fueled by clearer regulations and platforms like Open Issuance that simplify the issuance process.

The New Stablecoin Landscape

Stripe’s Open Issuance platform represents a fundamental shift in stablecoin creation. By removing technical barriers and providing shared liquidity, Bridge enables businesses to control their digital dollar infrastructure without depending on Tether or Circle. With Phantom leading the charge and regulatory clarity improving, the stablecoin market appears ready for its next phase of growth—one where businesses of all sizes can participate in the economics of digital dollars.