The Decibel Foundation, incubated by Aptos Labs, announced it will introduce a protocol-native stablecoin called USDCBL ahead of the February mainnet launch of its Aptos-based decentralized derivatives exchange. According to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph, the US dollar-denominated token will serve as collateral for on-chain perpetual futures trading, allowing the platform to internalize reserve-related economics rather than rely on third-party stablecoin issuers.
USDCBL will be issued through Bridge's Open Issuance platform, which was acquired by Stripe in late 2025. The foundation stated that USDCBL reserves will be backed by a mix of cash and short-term US Treasuries, with yield generated from those assets retained within the protocol. This approach aims to reduce reliance on trading fees or incentive programs as primary revenue sources, allowing value to be reinvested into protocol development and ecosystem initiatives.
At launch, users will deposit USDC and convert it into USDCBL as part of the onboarding process. The foundation emphasized that USDCBL is "core exchange infrastructure rather than a standalone retail token." Brylee Whatley, the foundation's director, stated that the asset ensures economic value generated by collateral remains within the protocol instead of being absorbed by third parties.
Decibel's December testnet attracted more than 650,000 unique accounts and exceeded 1 million daily trades, though these figures haven't been independently verified. The platform plans to launch this month with a fully on-chain perpetual futures venue using a single cross-margin account. The foundation plans to expand operations into real-world asset (RWA) trading and spot markets throughout the remainder of the year.
This development reflects a broader trend toward ecosystem-aligned dollar tokens across both crypto and traditional finance. Similar initiatives include Hyperliquid's USDH stablecoin launched in September and JPMorgan Chase's JPM Coin for institutional settlement. Fintech platforms like PayPal have also participated with PYUSD, further embedding stablecoins into their payment ecosystems.
