Wyoming will issue its own stablecoin labeled FRNT or Frontier. Formerly called WYST, the stablecoin is already live on Avalanche, according to the company.
The announcement was made at the SALT Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, which is taking place this week.
FRNT is reportedly fully backed by short-term US Treasuries and dollars, and is issued directly by the State of Wyoming. FRNT is said to be a fully audited public financial instrument with 102% reserves.
Avalanche notes that prior to the launch of FRNT, Wyoming piloted real-time contractor payments using the stablecoin, reducing transaction times from 45 days to seconds.
Avalanche explains:
“FRNT represents a breakthrough in programmable public finance, turning a government-issued digital asset into something that can soon be used in everyday life. Through a partnership with Rain, users will soon be able to spend FRNT anywhere Visa is accepted, online, in-store, and through Apple or Google Pay. While the ability to spend FRNT will be activated soon, attendees at SALT can already begin onboarding by completing KYC and receiving their Rain-issued Visa cards at the event. This is the first in-production use case for FRNT, a regulated, state-backed digital dollar being integrated into everyday financial tools.”
As the GENIUS Act is now law, stablecoin issuers will have clarity in guidance for payment stablecoin issuance. It is expected that many entities will offer dollar based stablecoins which may be better viewed as updated payment rails.
Wyoming has been at the forefront of digital asset innovation. During the dark ages of the Biden year, the state struggled to move forward but with the change in the Administration, digital asset innovation is now moving forward.