Tetra Digital Group, an Alberta-based digital asset custodian, has raised about $10 million to develop a regulated Canadian dollar stablecoin that it aims to issue in early 2026, the company said.
Investors in the round include Shopify, Wealthsimple, Purpose Unlimited, Shakepay, ATB Financial, National Bank and Urbana Corporation, which took a majority stake in Tetra earlier this year. The token would be issued through Tetra Trust, the firm’s regulated custody arm, and backed 1:1 by Canadian-dollar reserves held domestically, subject to regulatory approval.
The move seeks to provide an institutional-grade CAD payments option for domestic and cross-border transfers. According to Tetra’s CEO Didier Lavallée, the project is intended to “support homegrown solutions, built by Canadians, for Canadians” and help preserve economic sovereignty by keeping reserves and issuance onshore.
Stablecoins remain dominated by U.S. dollar–pegged tokens, even as the overall market grows quickly — estimates forecast an expansion from roughly $270 billion today toward the $1 trillion range in coming years. A regulated CAD stablecoin could lower friction and costs for remittances and business payments denominated in Canadian dollars.
Toronto fintech Stablecorp is pursuing a similar path with its QCAD stablecoin and earlier this year raised funding that included Coinbase Ventures and filed a preliminary prospectus with the Ontario Securities Commission.
What to watch: regulatory approval timelines, reserve audit and transparency practices, and adoption by banks and payment platforms. Regulatory or audit shortcomings could delay issuance or limit use cases.
Source: BusinessWire. Read the original coverage for full details.