Heir of Van Eck to Unveil New USD Stablecoin Supported by $12 Million Venture Capital

Nick van Eck, the offspring of investment guru Jan van Eck, is gearing up to introduce a fresh stablecoin backed by the United States dollar following the successful closure of a $12 million funding round.

In collaboration with crypto veterans Drake Evans and Joe McGrady, van Eck initiated the development of Agora in October. Their venture, as reported by Bloomberg on April 2, is poised to unveil the Agora digital dollar, denoted by the ticker AUSD, with van Eck assuming the role of CEO.

Backed by cash, U.S. Treasury bills, and overnight repo agreements, AUSD will maintain full collateralization. VanEck, a $90 billion asset management behemoth led by Jan van Eck, will oversee a fund dedicated to Agora’s reserves.

Kyle DaCruz, director of digital assets at VanEck, emphasized the necessity of transparent and reputable institutions managing the assets underlying digital currencies.

The $12 million seed funding round was spearheaded by digital asset venture capital firm Dragonfly, with further investments pouring in from Robot Ventures, Wintermute, Breed, and General Catalyst, where van Eck previously held a position as a partner.

Evans, previously heading lending at decentralized finance firm Frax Finance, and McGrady, formerly the director of operations at digital asset management firm Galaxy Digital, are key members of the Agora team.

While Agora’s parent company is registered in Delaware, its stablecoin issuer operates out of the British Virgin Islands. Initially, Agora will cater exclusively to select international markets until comprehensive legislation governing stablecoins in the United States is enacted.

Van Eck anticipates regions such as Argentina and Southeast Asia will reap substantial benefits from the introduction of a digital dollar.

Despite the dominance of established stablecoins like Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) with market capitalizations of $104.3 billion and $32.5 billion, respectively, Agora is poised to enter the competitive stablecoin arena. Van Eck envisions Agora forming robust partnerships across the cryptocurrency ecosystem, spanning exchanges, custodians, decentralized applications, and trading firms.

In contrast to TerraClassicUSD (USTC) holders who incurred losses following its collapse in May 2022, AUSD holders will not receive income. Van Eck emphasized the importance of steering the industry forward, particularly in light of past setbacks.

Agora refrained from immediate comment upon request.