USDCx Markets Are Live on Granite: Unlock Dollar Liquidity for Bitcoin DeFi

Today, we’re launching USDCx markets on Granite — introducing institutionally credible dollar liquidity into Bitcoin-native markets.

This marks an inflection point for Bitcoin’s financial layer. Through Stacks, sBTC, and now Circle’s USDCx, BTC can increasingly serve not only as long-term capital but also as productive collateral within markets designed for discipline, transparency, and durability.

Granite’s mission has always been clear: build lending infrastructure that respects Bitcoin’s ethos while supporting capital efficiency. USDCx markets move that mission forward.

What Is USDCx?

USDCx is a dollar-denominated stablecoin issued on Stacks and backed 1:1 by USDC held in Circle’s xReserve infrastructure.

USDCx is not a wrapped asset dependent on opaque bridges or third-party custodians. It is issued under Circle’s reserve model and designed to be fungible with USDC across supported ecosystems. For market participants, this means exposure to a stable asset backed by one of the most established reserve frameworks in digital assets — without introducing hidden layers of risk.

In practice, USDCx provides:

• Reserve-backed stability via Circle xReserve
• Interoperability with the broader USDC ecosystem
• Native availability within the Bitcoin execution layer through Stacks

This creates a foundation for dollar liquidity that is both credible and compatible with Bitcoin dApps.

Why USDCx on Granite Is Structurally Different

Granite is not optimizing for speculative yield. It is engineered for capital that intends to stay. USDCx markets inherit Granite’s core design principles:

• Non-rehypothecated liquidity - User funds are not reused, levered, or exposed to off-market risk.
• Soft liquidation mechanics - Liquidation behavior is designed to reduce reflexive cascade risk and mitigate unnecessary capital loss relative to traditional overcollateralized DeFi models.
• Transparent, on-chain risk parameters - Collateralization ratios, thresholds, and mechanics are explicit and verifiable.
• Proactive position management - Monitoring and notification systems reduce operational risk for borrowers.

The result is a lending environment designed for predictability and longevity, not extraction. 

Built for Bitcoin-Native Capital

USDCx markets are designed for participants who treat Bitcoin as long-term capital — not as disposable collateral.

This includes:

• Long-term BTC holders seeking liquidity without selling core holdings
• Bitcoin-aligned funds and allocators deploying stablecoin capital into conservative, transparent structures
  Family offices and treasuries managing BTC-denominated balance sheets
  Builders and operators who require dollar liquidity while remaining anchored to Bitcoin

Granite’s goal is to enable serious capital to operate around Bitcoin without compromising on custody, principles, or risk discipline.

Unlocking Dollar Liquidity for a Vastly Underutilized Asset

Less than 1% of circulating BTC is currently deployed in DeFi. This is not due to a lack of liquidity demand. It’s due to a lack of infrastructure that institutional capital is willing to trust.

USDCx markets introduce a new primitive:

sBTC is high-quality collateral, with access to credible dollar liquidity.

This unlocks clear, practical use cases:

• Borrow dollars (USDCx) against BTC without selling long-term holdings
• Access stable purchasing power while maintaining Bitcoin exposure
• Deploy stablecoin capital into markets secured by Bitcoin-native collateral
• Evaluate BTC-backed credit as a legitimate emerging asset class

This is not about extracting value from Bitcoin. It is about building financial gravity around it.

Bitcoin Is Becoming a Productive Asset

sBTC and USDCx represent a structural shift in what’s possible on Bitcoin.

Instead of exporting capital to external ecosystems, liquidity, credit, and applications can now be built directly around BTC:

• sBTC introduces programmable Bitcoin
• USDCx brings credible dollar liquidity
  Granite provides a disciplined market infrastructure

Together, they form the early architecture of a Bitcoin-native financial layer — one where capital formation happens around Bitcoin, not away from it.

USDCx Markets Are Now Live

USDCx market is live on Granite.

Participants can now:

• Supply USDCx as liquidity
• Borrow USDCx against sBTC collateral
• Access dollar liquidity without leaving the Bitcoin ecosystem

Granite is built to last, and now USDCx markets are part of that foundation.