Easy Crypto, in collaboration with Australian blockchain development firm Labrys, has successfully launched the New Zealand Dollar Stablecoin (NZDD) on November 22. The stablecoin is pegged 1:1 to the New Zealand dollar and is backed by cash in trust, adhering to regulation by the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority.
Initially available on the Ethereum blockchain, there are plans for expansion to other platforms, including Polygon, BNB Smart Chain, Arbitrum, Optimism, and Coinbase’s Base.
The motivation behind Easy Crypto’s launch of NZDD stems from the perceived difficulty for New Zealanders to optimize their profits using U.S. dollar-pegged tokens. Janine Grainger, the co-founder and CEO of Easy Crypto, expressed that NZDD aims to bridge the gap with traditional finance, positioning itself as a digital, programmable currency that mirrors the capabilities of the New Zealand Dollar.
In addition to the stablecoin, Easy Crypto introduced a multicurrency self-custody wallet, secured by multiparty computation cryptography. The unique feature involves leveraging a user’s “trusted social circle” for key protection instead of a conventional seed phrase.
New Zealand’s approach to crypto regulation has been described as “agile” in a parliamentary report commissioned in August. The report suggests addressing issues as they arise and creating consistent guidance for the treatment of digital assets under existing laws.
Previous attempts to launch a New Zealand dollar-pegged stablecoin include Techemyny’s 2021 introduction of $NZDs. However, in 2022, the stablecoin encountered challenges when the bridge it used was blacklisted following the DFX Finance protocol hack in November 2022, leaving a significant portion of funds stranded on the Polygon blockchain.
