Tron is set to introduce a stablecoin solution designed to eliminate gas fees for peer-to-peer stablecoin transfers on its blockchain and potentially others like Ethereum, said Justin Sun, the creator of the Tron network, in a recent post on X (formerly Twitter).
The new feature is expected to debut on Tron by Q4 this year.
Sun explained that this would mean the fees will be completely “covered by the stablecoins themselves.” However, he has not revealed how the gas-free system will work.
Our team is developing a new solution that enables gas-free stablecoin transfers. In other words, transfers can be made without paying any gas tokens, with the fees being entirely covered by the stablecoins themselves.
— H.E. Justin Sun 孙宇晨 (@justinsuntron) July 6, 2024
Better All The Time
The gas-free stablecoin feature is expected to launch on Tron’s blockchain in Q4 2024. Following the initial launch, the solution will be available on Ethereum and other Ethereum Virtual Machine compatible networks.
“This innovation will first be implemented on the Tron blockchain and later support Ethereum and all EVM-compatible public chains,” Sun stated.
While the exact technical details are unknown, Tron founder believes the new innovation could attract large companies to offer stablecoin services, and thus boost stablecoin adoption.
“I believe that similar services will greatly facilitate large companies in deploying stablecoin services on the blockchain, elevating blockchain mass adoption to a new level,” said Sun.
According to data from blockchain analytics firm Artemis, Tron has become the second-largest network for stablecoins after Ethereum, controlling around 36% of the stablecoin market. The blockchain has processed over $50 billion in Tether (USDT).
Tron’s gas-free stablecoin could compete with free transfer options offered by PayPal (PYUSD) and USD Coin (USDC) on Ethereum’s layer-2 solution.
In addition, Tron might be exploring a layer-2 solution for Bitcoin that could enable “wrapped” Tether tokens, potentially bringing billions to the Bitcoin ecosystem. The network currently relies on existing cross-chain protocols to move USDT and other tokens between Bitcoin and their network.
No Stopping Tron
The plan comes after Circle and Binance recently dropped USDC support on Tron. These suspensions could push the Tron team to develop their own stablecoin solution.
Earlier in February, Circle announced it would discontinue support for USDC, its stablecoin, on the Tron blockchain. USDC has a relatively small supply on Tron compared to Ethereum.
The firm said the move was part of ongoing efforts to “ensure that USDC remains trusted, transparent and safe. Circle also stopped minting USDC on Tron.
Following Circle, leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance said in March it would no longer support Tron’s TRC-20 USDC deposits and withdrawals, starting on April 5. Crypto investors using Binance were advised to convert, transfer or cash out their TRC-20 USDC tokens before the designated time.
Controversy
Justin Sun’s announcement of Tron’s coming stablecoin solution has drawn comments from cryptocurrency community members. Sam Kazemian, the founder of Frax Finance, a DeFi protocol that has developed a unique fractional-algorithmic stablecoin called FRAX, proposed enabling gas-free transfers for the FRAX stablecoin on Tron.
Some users, however, expressed skepticism about the idea of truly gas-free stablecoin transactions. There are always computational costs associated with processing transactions on a blockchain, and someone has to pay for them. Some doubt Tron’s proposed gas-free solution can function without some hidden cost.
Tron and Justin Sun are currently facing a legal lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC filed a lawsuit against Justin Sun, accusing him of manipulating wash trading on the Bittrex exchange and selling unregistered securities through the TRX and BTT tokens.
The SEC claimed it has jurisdiction over Sun due to his extensive travel and activities in the U.S. between 2017-2019.
Meanwhile, Sun recently won a defamation lawsuit against the Chongqing Business Media Group in China. The court ruled that the media outlet published false and defamatory content about Sun without evidence, and ordered them to retract the statements and issue a public apology.
