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London/New York, December 4, 2025
Stable, a new EVM-compatible Layer-1 blockchain developed under the stewardship of Tether and Bitfinex, will officially launch its mainnet on Sunday, December 8, 2025, at 13:00 UTC.
The network introduces a first-of-its-kind economic design: all transaction fees and settlements will be paid exclusively in USDT, Tether’s $184 billion flagship stablecoin.
By eliminating volatile native gas tokens, Stable claims it can deliver sub-1-second finality and consistently low, dollar-denominated costs even during peak network activity.
Key Takeaways
- First major Layer-1 to use a dollar stablecoin (USDT) as its exclusive gas and settlement asset
- $1.1 billion in pre-launch deposits and $28 million raised from tier-1 investors
- Sub-1-second finality with full EVM compatibility
- Fixed-supply governance token offering real-yield staking rewards denominated in USDT
- Direct strategic challenge to existing Layer-2 stablecoin issuance platforms
$1.1 Billion in Pre-Deposits Signal Strong Institutional Demand
Since opening phased deposits in October, more than 10,000 wallets have locked $1.1 billion worth of USDT and other assets ahead of genesis, according to on-chain data verified by Stable’s team.
The figure places Stable among the best-capitalized Layer-1 launches of the past three years.
The project previously raised $28 million in a seed round co-led by Hack VC and PayPal Ventures, with participation from Franklin Templeton, Kraken Ventures, Anchorage Digital co-founder Diogo Mónica, and several other prominent funds.
Technical Highlights and Consensus Mechanism
Stable operates on StableBFT, a delegated proof-of-stake consensus algorithm derived from Tendermint and HotStuff variants. Independent testnet benchmarks published last month recorded average block times of 730 milliseconds and finality under one second.
The chain is fully compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine, allowing developers to port existing Solidity smart contracts without modification. Initial integrations include USDT0 (Tether’s omnichain transfer protocol), Anchorage Digital for qualified custody, and payment providers Oobit and Orbital.
Tokenomics: Fixed Supply, Real-Yield Staking
The native governance and staking token, STABLE, has a permanent maximum supply of 100 billion tokens and no inflationary emissions.
- 10% unlocked at mainnet for community liquidity mining and airdrops
- 40% allocated to ecosystem development and grants (3-year linear vest)
- 25% to core contributors (4-year vest with 1-year cliff)
- 25% to investors (4-year vest with 1-year cliff)
Staking rewards will be paid exclusively from network fees collected in USDT, creating what the team members describe as “real yield without money printer mechanics.”
Positioning Against Layer-2 Competitors
Stable’s leadership has positioned the network as a direct alternative to Cosmos-based issuance chains such as Noble and Ethereum scaling solutions.
By operating as an independent Layer-1 with native USDT accounting, the protocol avoids bridge risks, sequencer centralization, and base-layer fee volatility that affect many rollups.
Analysts note that Tether’s dominance in stablecoin supply gives Stable a unique distribution advantage: every USDT holder is already a potential user with zero onboarding friction.
Launch Timeline and Next Steps
- December 8, 13:00 UTC: Genesis block and validator set activation
- December 9 onward: Progressive activation of STABLE staking and governance modules
- Q1 2026: Planned rollout of tokenized securities framework in partnership with regulated issuers
Paolo Ardoino, CTO of both Tether and Bitfinex and a key architect of the project, stated:
“Stable is not another general-purpose chain. It is purpose-built infrastructure for the dollar digital economy, fast, predictable, and backed by the largest stablecoin in existence.”
As of press time, pre-market perpetual contracts for STABLE on Binance and Bybit were trading at prices implying a fully diluted valuations between $2.8 billion and $3.4 billion.
The mainnet launch comes at a time of renewed institutional interest in blockchain-based settlement rails, with global stablecoin transfer volume having surpassed $27 trillion on an annualized basis in 2025, according to The Block Research.
Read Next:
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- Stablecoins for Carbon Credits
- Rise Stablecoin Payroll Review 2026
FAQs:
1. When exactly does Stable mainnet launch?
December 8, 2025, at 13:00 UTC (8:00 AM EST / 5:00 AM PST / 9:00 PM HKT).
2. Why use USDT instead of a native token for gas fees?
It removes fee volatility, makes costs predictable in dollar terms, and allows everyday users and businesses to transact without exposure to a separate volatile asset.
3. Is Stable just another Ethereum L2?
No. It is an independent sovereign Layer-1 with its own validator set, consensus mechanism, and finality guarantees.
4. Can I run a validator at launch?
Yes. The minimum stake is 1 million STABLE, with delegation available through community pools from day one.
5. Where will STABLE token be listed first?
Bitfinex will offer spot trading from launch. Additional CEX and DEX listings are expected within the first week, though no official announcements have been made yet.
