On September 15, Circle, the issuer of USD Coin (USDC), announced a pivotal partnership with Sony Block Solutions Labs to expand the adoption of its stablecoin. This collaboration will integrate Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard onto Sony’s Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, Soneium, positioning USDC as one of the key tokens for transactions within the Soneium ecosystem.
Setup Details
Soneium was launched in August this year as part of a broader effort to establish a more interconnected digital economy. Developed through a joint venture between Sony Group Corporation and Startale Labs, Soneium sets to offer a scalable and efficient infrastructure using distributed ledger technology.
Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard plays a key role in this ecosystem by allowing a bridged version of USDC to operate on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchains. Acting as a “proxy” for native USDC on Ethereum, this setup enables smooth, digital dollar payments across layer-2 chains like Soneium, thereby simplifying the user experience and boosting adoption.
Jun Watanabe, Chairman of Sony Block Solutions Labs, highlighted the importance of this partnership, saying, “The collaboration aligns with our vision of creating a more interconnected and efficient digital ecosystem.” Circle’s CEO, Jeremy Allaire, echoed the sentiment, emphasizing that this partnership will empower creators and innovators to benefit from secure, user-friendly Web3 experiences.