Wyoming is reportedly developing its own U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin to be used for consumer payments.
The state plans to launch the Wyoming Stable Token in the first quarter of 2025, CNBC reported Friday (Aug. 23).
“It is clear to me that digital assets are going to have a future,” Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon told CNBC at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium in Jackson Hole. “The United States has to address this issue. Washington’s being a little bit stodgy, which is why Wyoming, being a nimble and entrepreneurial state, can make a difference.”
Advocates of the project the Wyoming stable token will provide a faster and cheaper way for individuals and businesses to transact, will create a new revenue stream for the state and may serve as a model for a stablecoin at the federal level, according to the report.
Gordon said the stablecoin will be transparent, fully backed by short-term Treasurys and dollar-dependent, per the report.
Wyoming has already been working to create a favorable regulatory environment for crypto, having passed more than 30 pieces of legislation related to that field since 2018, according to the report.
The state is currently vetting potential vendors and partners to provide an exchange, digital wallets and other technology needed for the stable token, per the report.
Wyoming aims to make the stablecoin a payment method for everyday use, Flavia Naves, a commissioner at the Wyoming Stable Token Commission, said in the report.
“When you walk into Cowboy Coffee in Jackson, Wyoming, and you want to buy your latte, there’s going to be their wallet there in Solana that you can use to buy your coffee with the Wyoming token,” Naves said, per the report.
Stablecoins are a type of currency designed to maintain a stable value by pegging their worth to a fiat currency, PYMNTS reported in April. Unlike traditional cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, which are notorious for their price fluctuations, stablecoins offer a level of stability that closely mirrors that of traditional currencies.
On the federal level, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., introduced legislation to govern stablecoin use.
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