Circle and Sony Team Up to Boost USDC Adoption on Soneium’s Layer-2 Blockchain

Circle, a prominent stablecoin issuer, has announced a strategic partnership with Sony Block Solutions Labs, aiming to enhance the adoption of its USD Coin (USDC) on Sony’s newly developed layer-2 blockchain, Soneium. 

We’re excited to announce our collaboration with Sony Block Solutions Labs to bring bridged USDC on Soneium via our Bridged USDC Standard! This marks a significant milestone to set the stage for a new era of creativity in the Web3 space.

Read more about the collaboration here:… pic.twitter.com/0IRxrXhf5P

— Circle (@circle) September 16, 2024

On September 15, Circle confirmed its partnership with Sony’s blockchain division, which will see USDC integrated into Soneium, a public Ethereum layer-2 blockchain developed by Sony Block Solutions Labs. 

The partnership involves the use of Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard, a specification for deploying a bridged form of USDC on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchains. This integration is expected to make USDC one of the primary tokens for value exchange within the Soneium ecosystem, enabling digital dollar payments on this layer-2 network.

Soneium, launched in August 2024, represents Sony’s foray into blockchain technology, developed in collaboration with Startale Labs. The blockchain aims to provide a robust infrastructure for Web3 applications, and the integration of USDC is seen as a move to facilitate more efficient and secure transactions within this ecosystem. 

Jun Watanabe, Chairman of Sony Block Solutions Labs, emphasized that the collaboration aligns with Sony’s vision of creating a more interconnected and efficient digital ecosystem.

For Circle, this partnership is a pivotal moment in its ongoing efforts to promote the use of USDC across various blockchain networks. The firm’s CEO, Jeremy Allaire, stated that this collaboration is a significant milestone for Circle’s mission to accelerate the adoption of stablecoins and blockchain technology, particularly in empowering creators within the Web3 space.

This cooperation is a major part of Sony’s blockchain division’s outlined development plan. Today, Sony’s blockchain division partners with several major players in the blockchain industry, such as Astar, Alchemy, Chainlink, Optimism, and The Graph.

Furthermore, in early September, Samsung’s investment division, Samsung Next, announced a strategic investment in Startale Labs, underscoring the growing interest and investment in Soneium’s development.

Circle remains the world’s second-largest stablecoin issuer, with a current circulating supply of $35.7 billion. While this represents a significant increase of 47% since the start of the year, it is still 36% below its peak supply of $56 billion in June 2022. Despite this, Circle remains confident in the mainstream adoption of stablecoins as a key financial tool for the digital age.

During its recent interview, Dante Disparte, Circle’s Chief Strategy Officer, spoke about the stablecoins and the vision to continue to grow as the money of the Internet. Another important step towards the vision is partnering with Sony Block Solutions Labs.