Linea will be the first blockchain to upgrade from Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard to native USDC. The upgrade brings the world’s largest regulated stablecoin to Linea, strengthening the L2 as a payments network.

Linea, the home network to global payment applications like MetaMask Card, will soon be the first Layer-2 (L2) to seamlessly upgrade from Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard to native USDC without any action required from users or developers.

The milestone is the latest on Linea’s journey to build an Ethereum-equivalent zkEVM that can scale to serve the world’s needs for payments and cultivate an ecosystem of user-friendly experiences that offer more benefits than existing traditional solutions.

The transition from USDC.e to native USDC on Linea will be fully seamless and supported by Circle's Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) V2. The frictionless process will be entirely automatic, unlike complex migrations that have occurred on other networks. No complicated instructions. No need to swap tokens. No disruption to existing DeFi positions.

"At Linea, we're redefining onchain payments as the intuitive, non-custodial neobank for Ethereum,” said Linea Product Lead, Declan Fox. “With our seamless shift to native USDC supported by Circle’s CCTP V2, MetaMask Card users can effortlessly access secure, regulated assets to earn rewards, pay bills, and shop — bridging DeFi and everyday finance without compromise."

One Place for All Payments and Personal Finance

The native USDC upgrade is a significant advantage for DeFi enthusiasts or anyone seeking faster, more secure, and cost-effective transactions without relying on traditional banking systems. Linea’s ecosystem currently hosts over $21 million in bridged USDC, 100+ DeFi apps and continues to grow.

MetaMask Card, which runs on Linea and works just like any other Mastercard debit card in the real world, is another way Linea is building the future of personal finance and payments onchain. Card holders can spend the USDC in their wallet by simply tapping their card at any point of sale.

Even better, each purchase of groceries or bill paid with MetaMask Card on Linea will also result in cashback in the form of USDC and other tokens back in your self-custody wallet (currently 1%, but higher and more rewards are coming soon). All your payments, your finances, under your control.

The move to native USDC, combined with a rapidly growing DeFi ecosystem, daily spending with MetaMask Card, cashback and more rewards in the future, form the foundation for Linea’s expansive payments and personal finance offering.

It’s time to move off of Wall Street and come build your forever home on Linea.

Improving the Architecture of the World’s Home Network

Linea's zkEVM architecture offers real zero-knowledge finality with no execution delay, setting it apart from traditional financial systems and many other blockchain networks.

Linea already inherits Ethereum’s security and decentralization while offering full compatibility, increased speed and drastically reduced costs. The upgrade to native USDC goes further, offering all Linea users:

• The world’s largest regulated stablecoin;

• Improved cross-chain liquidity and capital efficiency with CCTP V2;

• Seamless integration with existing DeFi apps, wallets, and exchanges.

See full details of the Bridged USDC standard to native USDC upgrade process from Circle.