Sonic Labs Cancels US Dollar-Pegged Algorithmic Stablecoin Launch, Opting for a UAE Dirham Alternative

input: Labs has canceled plans to launch a US dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin, opting instead to develop a United Arab Emirates dirham-denominated alternative.

Sonic Labs has canceled plans to launch a US dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin and will instead be developing a United Arab Emirates dirham-denominated alternative.

On March 22, Sonic Labs co-founder Andre Cronje said the company was working on an annual percentage rate (APR) of up to 23% with the US dollar-pegged algorithmic stablecoin, according to a direct translation.

However, one week later, the firm reversed course.

“We will no longer be releasing a USD based algorithmic stable coin. Completely unrelated, we will be releasing a mathematically bound numerical Dirham which is settled and denominated in USD, which is definitely not a USD based algorithmic stable coin,” said Cronje in a March 28 X post.

The shift in strategy comes shortly after the UAE announced it would launch its digital dirham central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the fourth quarter of 2025.

The digital dirham will be based on blockchain technology and aims to enhance financial stability and help combat financial crime, said Khaled Mohamed Balama, governor of the Central Bank of the UAE. It will also be accepted alongside its physical counterpart in all payment channels, according to a report by Khaleej Times.

Sonic faced criticism over stablecoin plans

The announcement follows widespread criticism of Sonic’s original plan to launch an algorithmic stablecoin — a model that has raised concerns across the crypto industry since the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in 2022.

Cronje himself previously admitted to experiencing Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to algorithmic stablecoin due to previous cycles:

In May 2022, the $40 billion Terra ecosystem collapsed, erasing tens of billions of dollars of value in a matter of days. Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin, TerraUSD (UST), had been yielding over a 20% annual percentage yield (APY) on Anchor Protocol prior to its collapse.

As UST lost its dollar peg, crashing to a low of around $0.30, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon took to X (then Twitter) to share his rescue plan. At the same time, the value of sister token LUNA — once a top 10 crypto project by market capitalization — plunged over 98% to $0.84. LUNA was trading north of $120 in early April 2022.

The collapse of the algorithmic stablecoin issuer created shockwaves among both crypto investors and lawmakers.

To reduce systemic risk, the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) bill will prohibit algorithmic stablecoins to avoid another Terra-like failure.

Meanwhile, stablecoins are increasingly being used for smaller, everyday payments rather than large transfers, according to CoinFund managing partner David Pakman.

“We’ve seen a significant decrease in the size of each stablecoin transaction, which points to the fact that they are being used more as payments and less for large transfers,” Pakman said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction live show on X on March 27.