Universal has announced the expansion of its dollar-backed USDU stablecoin to Solana, extending its UAE-regulated issuance framework and 1:1 reserve backing to another blockchain for institutional settlement.
Summary
- USDU’s Solana integration will support transfers, digital asset settlement, and institutional treasury management.
- Universal says dollar reserves back USDU 1:1, with independent attestations published each month.
- Aquanow will provide distribution and institutional access across supported markets.
- USDU’s UAE registration permits digital asset payments but excludes general mainland domestic payments.
Universal said in its announcement that eligible participants will be able to hold and transfer USDU on Solana, using the network for dollar-denominated transactions around the clock. The issuer identified digital asset settlement and treasury management among the intended uses, alongside other on-chain financial activities.
Under the terms described by Universal, access remains focused on professional and institutional participants in the UAE and permitted international markets. The company said Aquanow, its global distributor, will connect eligible participants with the stablecoin through its institutional distribution infrastructure.
USDU’s Solana expansion targets institutional settlement
Through the integration, Universal said USDU will become available across additional wallets, platforms and financial applications that support Solana. The company described the network’s transaction speed, low costs, and continuous operation as reasons for extending the stablecoin to the blockchain.
Juha Viitala, Universal’s senior executive officer, tied the expansion to institutional access to digital dollars.
“Expanding USDU to Solana brings the reach of regulated, USD-denominated liquidity to one of the most active environments for on-chain payments and financial applications.”
In the same statement, Viitala said the combination of USDU’s UAE regulatory framework and Solana’s infrastructure would give eligible institutions flexibility in how they “access, move and deploy digital dollars on-chain.”
For distribution, Universal said Aquanow will handle connections with institutions and professional participants across supported markets. Aquanow describes its customers and partners as banks, neobanks, brokerages and payment companies, with regional teams operating across North America, the Middle East, Europe and Asia.
According to the announcement, Aquanow’s UAE business operates through Aquanow ME FZE, which is regulated by Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority. Its licensed activities include broker-dealer services, lending and borrowing, and management and investment services.
UAE authorization limits USDU to specified payment uses
Universal said USDU is the first dollar-backed stablecoin registered with the Central Bank of the UAE as a Foreign Payment Token. The company identifies that registration as the basis for its permitted use in digital asset-related payments within the country.
For UAE transactions, Universal’s disclosures state that USDU may be used to purchase digital assets and digital asset derivatives. The issuer expressly excludes general payment purposes in mainland UAE, including domestic payments.
Within Abu Dhabi Global Market, Universal Digital Intl Limited is separately regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority to issue a Fiat-Referenced Token to Professional Clients only, according to the company’s regulatory disclosures.
On reserve backing, Universal said it holds one dollar in reserves for each USDU token. The issuer also said independent attestations are published monthly, allowing participants to review reports covering the reserves.
USDU already has a connection to dirham-denominated settlement. In a May 7 report, crypto.news covered a regulated stablecoin conversion framework linking USDU with the dirham-backed AE Coin, supported by Al Maryah Community Bank. The companies described the arrangement as infrastructure for institutional settlement, liquidity management, treasury operations, and cross-border transactions.
For that conversion service, the companies identified Aquanow and Changer.ae as the initial access providers. They also said future integrations could support trade finance and multi-currency settlement, presenting those services as potential extensions rather than completed launches.
Bitcoin.com previously added an Ethereum access route
Before the Solana announcement, Bitcoin.com outlined plans to add USDU wallet support on Aug. 19. The agreement covered its web and mobile self-custodial wallet, with USDU supported as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum.
According to Bitcoin.com, users would be able to hold, send, and receive the token while retaining control of their private keys. The company said availability would depend on local rules, with additional services relying on integrations from outside providers.
Beyond storage and transfers, Bitcoin.com said it planned to accept USDU for designated services and work toward payments between users and merchants across its products. Swaps and fiat purchase and sale functions were expected to follow when third-party providers supported the stablecoin.
The wallet announcement also included educational material explaining fiat-backed stablecoins, reserve attestations and regulated issuance. Bitcoin.com said users would receive that information through its Learn-to-Earn content and a dedicated stablecoin education series.
Solana payment products already serve business and remittance users
For U.S. business payments, Ramp described a separate Solana-based service in July that lets companies fund overseas stablecoin transfers from dollar bank accounts. Its Solana-powered stablecoin accounts, reported on July 22, support USDC and USDT rather than USDU.
Through Ramp Bill Pay, the company said customers could fund payments from a U.S. dollar bank account or Ramp Checking, with the money converted into USDC or USDT before delivery to a recipient’s wallet. Stablecoin balances sit alongside cash accounts and use existing approval policies and accounting integrations, according to Ramp.
The company said its service supported vendor payments in more than 140 countries and fiat payouts in over 40 local currencies. Ramp also reported that more than 1,000 businesses used stablecoins for vendor payments, with over 70% of their payment volume occurring outside traditional banking hours.
In consumer remittances, Western Union and Rain launched the Stablecard wallet on Aug. 4 across 37 markets, according to an Aug. 5 report. The product uses Western Union’s USDPT stablecoin, issued on Solana by Anchorage Digital Bank and redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars.
According to Western Union, customers can receive eligible remittances into Stablecard, transfer USDPT from compatible wallets or exchanges, and spend through Visa merchants or withdraw through ATMs. Rain built the application, embedded wallet, and card infrastructure, while the product’s disclosures state that ATM charges, foreign exchange costs, and other fees may apply.
