Bitcoin Gets Its Native Dollar: Citrea Launches $ctUSD With MoonPay and M0

Bitcoin is getting something it has long lacked: a native, compliant dollar layer built specifically for Bitcoin applications.
 
Citrea, the Bitcoin application layer developed by Chainway Labs, has announced the launch of Citrea USD (ctUSD) — a 1:1 U.S. dollar–denominated stablecoin issued by MoonPay and powered by M0. Fully backed by short-term U.S. Treasury bills and cash, ctUSD is designed to become the foundational stablecoin for Bitcoin-based finance.

Rather than bolting dollar liquidity onto Bitcoin through bridges or external assets, ctUSD is issued natively on Citrea, giving the Bitcoin ecosystem a unified and compliant settlement asset from day one.

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Solving Bitcoin’s Stablecoin Gap

For years, Bitcoin development has faced a structural constraint: while BTC is the most secure and widely held crypto asset, there has been no globally accessible, compliant stablecoin built specifically for Bitcoin-native applications.
 
That gap has forced developers to rely on bridged assets, fragmented liquidity pools, and third-party intermediaries — introducing complexity and systemic risk before ecosystems even reach maturity.
 
ctUSD is designed to eliminate that fragmentation.

“Liquidity on Citrea is forming now. By establishing a native, compliant standard early, the ecosystem avoids splintering into dozens of incompatible, risky bridged tokens before it even matures.”

Orkun Kilic, Co-founder & CEO of Chainway Labs

Built for Compliance and Global Access

ctUSD combines three critical components: native issuance, regulatory alignment, and global distribution.
 
The stablecoin is issued by MoonPay, one of the most established crypto payments companies globally, serving over 30 million verified users across more than 180 countries.

As a result, ctUSD will be accessible in the U.S. (excluding New York) and more than 160 countries worldwide, while remaining fully redeemable 1:1 through regulated issuance and redemption processes.

“Compliance is key to responsible scaling. Citrea applies that approach from the start, creating safe and accessible pathways into the Bitcoin ecosystem.”

 

Ivan Soto-Wright, Co-founder & CEO of MoonPay

Powered by M0’s Stablecoin Infrastructure

Under the hood, ctUSD runs on M0, a universal stablecoin platform built to support programmable, interoperable digital dollars across applications and networks.
 
Rather than launching a one-off stablecoin, Citrea is leveraging M0’s infrastructure to ensure ctUSD can expand across integrations over time — without sacrificing controls, transparency, or composability.

“Open, interoperable platforms are the foundation for scalable stablecoin infrastructure. ctUSD shows how application-specific digital dollars can launch quickly while remaining flexible enough to grow across networks.”

Luca Prosperi, CEO of M0

Banking Rails for Bitcoin Finance

Beyond stable settlement, ctUSD is designed as infrastructure, not just a token. Developers building on Citrea gain access to a full toolkit that connects Bitcoin collateral to real-world finance, including:

• Virtual IBANs (vIBANs) via Iron (a MoonPay company), enabling dedicated USD bank accounts with ACH and wire support

• Non-custodial cross-chain access through Swaps.xyz, allowing assets from Ethereum and Solana to bridge into Citrea

• Merchant payments via Helio, enabling “Pay with ctUSD” cards and real-world checkout support

Together, these components position ctUSD as a true banking rail for Bitcoin-native capital markets, rather than a passive store of value.

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A New Phase for Bitcoin Applications

Backed by investors including Founders Fund, Galaxy, Maven 11, Delphi Digital, Erik Voorhees, and Balaji Srinivasan, the platform is focused on bringing institutional-grade infrastructure to Bitcoin without compromising its core principles.