Catenaa, Wednesday, July 02, 2025- Nick van Eck, chief executive of Agora, accused Anchorage of bias after the crypto custodian’s “stablecoin safety matrix” ranked Agora’s AUSD as notably risky.
Anchorage published the report on Thursday, evaluating reserves, banking partners and liability safeguards for major issuers.
Anchorage delisted AUSD and Circle’s USDC, citing structural concerns over regulatory oversight and backing assets.
Van Eck claimed the move was retaliatory after Agora declined to subscribe to Anchorage’s “Genius Bill as a Service” offering.
He said the same Anchorage executive who promoted the product later confirmed that two firms were slated to use it, implying they earned top rankings.
“If Anchorage had simply chosen stablecoins in which it holds an economic interest, I could accept that as a business decision,” van Eck said.
“But publishing false security claims to delegitimize competitors is unserious and bizarre.”
Anchorage defended its matrix as a comparative reference tool based solely on public disclosures and third-party documents. It placed PayPal’s PYUSD and Paxos-backed USDP at the top, followed by Ripple’s RLUSD, Tether’s USDT and Global Dollar’s USDG, supported by operators including Robinhood and Kraken.
Van Eck noted that AUSD’s reserves are held by State Street, with VanEck asset manager overseeing the Agora Reserve Fund. He urged readers to judge the coin on transparent criteria rather than undisclosed arrangements.
