In today’s crypto update, the launch of Open Standard’s OUSD stablecoin has hit an unexpected setback. Several major South Korean companies have denied joining the Open USD Alliance despite being listed as founding partners, raising fresh questions about the consortium ahead of its launch.
Korean Firms Deny Open USD Partnership Claims
According to a Chosun Biz report, several Korean firms, including Samsung Electronics, Dunamu, and K Bank, have denied any official affiliation with the Open USD consortium. The companies spoke out after Open Standard named them as founding partners for its stablecoin project.
Samsung said it never held official discussions with the Open USD issuers. Company officials also said they did not know what role Samsung is expected to play in the consortium. Dunamu, KBank, and Shinhan gave slightly different accounts. They confirmed that Open Standard had contacted them about joining the upcoming launch. However, they stressed that they had not given any official approval before the issuer listed them as founding partners.
Another unnamed company shared a similar experience. A representative said the firm only learned it had been included in the consortium after seeing local news reports. The company described the listing as surprising because, although Open Standard had reached out, it had never received the firm’s formal approval to join the alliance.
Open Standard Unveils OUSD Stablecoin Plan
For context, Open Standard announced the upcoming launch of OUSD on June 30, 2026. The company said the stablecoin will focus on enabling faster, more efficient global money movement. As part of the announcement, Open Standard listed 140 companies, including BlackRock, Stripe, Ripple, and Visa, as founding partners. According to the company, these partners will collectively govern the OUSD network.
They will help ensure that decisions benefit all members instead of a single entity. The partners will also receive a share of the earnings generated from the OUSD reserve. Commenting on the launch, Open Standard CEO Zach Abrams claimed that existing stablecoins already offer many benefits. However, he argued that businesses need a stablecoin that is broadly accessible and operates at a lower cost. He said OUSD was created to meet that need.
Samara Cohen, BlackRock’s Head of Market Development, also welcomed the initiative. She said OUSD will give businesses more choice in how they access tokenized value. However, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire was less optimistic about the initiative. Following the announcement, he questioned the consortium model, saying similar industry alliances have had very little success in the past.
According to Allaire, such groups often struggle with slow decision-making and misaligned member incentives. Despite the objections from Samsung and several Korean firms, their names continue to appear as founding partners on Open Standard’s official website. The company has not publicly explained why the firms remain on the partner list despite their denials.
The CoinRemark Team
Josiah Oluwadare