CADD stablecoin: Shopify and National Bank back regulated CAD token

Tetra Trust, through its agent CAD Digital, has launched CADD, a Canadian-dollar stablecoin issued by a regulated financial institution and presented as a 1:1 CAD-backed payment token for institutional use. The company says CADD received approval from the Alberta Treasury Board and Finance and is designed to enable round-the-clock on-chain CAD transactions for settlement and treasury operations.

The initiative is supported by a consortium that includes Shopify, National Bank of Canada, Wealthsimple, Urbana Corporation and other Canadian fintech and financial services firms. Tetra previously ran proof-of-concept tests that moved CADD between National Bank and Wealthsimple, demonstrating cross-institution settlement flows. The consortium model aims to accelerate integration with existing institutional processes.

CADD is live on Base, Ethereum and Tempo networks with Solana planned, and Tetra emphasizes that each token is fully collateralized by Canadian-dollar reserves held domestically under Canadian law. The protocol targets replacement of legacy batch settlement windows with near-instant, programmable transfers that can support corporate treasury and fintech-to-fintech liquidity needs.

From a market perspective, a regulated CAD stablecoin issued by an established trust company could lower frictions in cross-border payments and reduce operational costs for institutions, but widespread adoption depends on regulatory clarity, auditability of reserves and interoperability with traditional payment rails. Canadian and international regulators’ stance will shape the pace and scale of adoption.

Market watchers say CADD is likely to first scale within partner networks and corporate treasury use cases before broader market rollout. Near-term milestones to monitor include third-party reserve attestations, formal integration pilots with major banks and payment systems, and expansion of blockchain support—factors that will determine whether the token becomes a structural part of institutional CAD liquidity.