Tetra Trust Launches CADD, Canada’s First Regulated CAD Stablecoin

Canadian digital asset firm Tetra Trust Company has launched CADD, a Canadian dollar-pegged stablecoin approved by the Alberta Treasury Board and Finance, marking a significant step in the country’s push toward regulated blockchain-based payments.

The company said CADD is the first CAD-backed stablecoin issued by a regulated financial institution in Canada.

Its reserves are held in trust under Canadian law and dedicated to redemption, aiming to provide institutional-grade security and transparency.

The token is already live on multiple blockchains, including Ethereum and Base, with support for Solana expected in the near future.

Tetra, headquartered in Calgary, raised $10 million for the project in September 2025, with backing from major players such as Shopify, Wealthsimple, National Bank of Canada, and others. The same consortium is supporting the stablecoin’s rollout.

In December, the firm conducted a testnet transaction between Wealthsimple and National Bank, marking the first time a Canadian stablecoin moved between two financial institutions, according to Tetra.

CADD is designed primarily for institutional use cases, including 24/7 cross-border settlements, real-time treasury transfers, programmable payouts, and direct fintech-to-fintech transactions—offering a faster alternative to traditional correspondent banking systems.

This latest development comes amid rapid growth in the global stablecoin sector, which has surpassed $320 billion in market capitalization.

Despite this expansion, Canada has lacked a widely available, regulated CAD-denominated option.

Tetra noted that Canada processes around $424 billion in daily payments through legacy systems still reliant on batch infrastructure developed decades ago.

Meanwhile, U.S. regulatory momentum has helped accelerate stablecoin adoption south of the border, leaving USD-backed tokens to dominate globally.

Limited Domestic Competition

Competition in Canada’s stablecoin space remains relatively limited. Stablecorp, backed by Coinbase Ventures, has received approval for its QCAD token but has yet to achieve broad availability.

Another entrant, Loon—spun out of Paytrie—has taken over the CADC stablecoin, which has processed more than $200 million in transaction volume.

Loon has raised $3 million in early funding and is working through regulatory approvals.

Tetra Trust, which was Canada’s first regulated digital asset custodian, already provides custody services for the country’s first staking-enabled Ether and Solana ETFs, positioning it as a key player in bridging traditional finance and blockchain infrastructure.