Wood’s comments came as Open Standard pushes OUSD with backing from more than 140 companies, even as some named South Korean firms denied formally joining the consortium.
Cathie Wood said ARK Invest views stablecoins as monetary networks whose advantages deepen over time through trust, collateral utility and integration. She said those network effects have helped Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC secure dominant positions and, citing ARK Invest Director of Digital Assets Lorenzo Valente, argued newer entrants such as Open USD are unlikely to displace them. Her remarks came as Open Standard, led by Stripe-owned Bridge co-founder Zach Abrams, advances OUSD after unveiling the stablecoin late last month with support from more than 140 companies. Samsung Electronics, Shinhan Financial Group and other South Korean companies later said they had not formally agreed to participate in the consortium. Launch backers including BlackRock, Visa, Stripe, Google, Coinbase and DBS said OUSD is intended to cut adoption costs by eliminating issuance and redemption fees, sharing most reserve income with participants and creating independent governance. The stablecoin is expected to launch later this year as competition in the sector intensifies, with the market growing to nearly $308 billion.