Paxos (USDP)
NYDFS limited-purpose trust company — strongest US regulatory framework
Issued by Paxos Trust Company · founded 2018 · New York, USA
⚠ Not financial advice
Stablecoin issuer disclosures, reserves composition, regulatory status, and redemption mechanics change continually. This page is reference information, not investment advice. Verify current attestations directly at the issuer's transparency page (https://paxos.com/transparency) before allocating capital.
Verdict
Paxos Trust Company holds a NYDFS limited-purpose trust charter — one of the most regulated stablecoin issuer frameworks globally. Monthly attestation by WithumSmith+Brown (PCAOB-registered). USDP itself is smaller in market cap than Paxos's discontinued BUSD product, but the regulator-grade safety is the highest tier. The February 2023 NYDFS order against Paxos was about the BUSD-Binance contractual arrangement, not USDP's structural integrity.
Peg mechanism
Fiat-backed. Cash + Treasury bills + bank deposits
Reserves + attestation
- Composition: Cash + Treasury bills + bank deposits
- Attestation firm: WithumSmith+Brown (PCAOB-registered)
- Cadence: monthly
- Transparency page: https://paxos.com/transparency
Regulatory status
NYDFS limited-purpose trust company — among the most regulated stablecoin frameworks globally. SEC-registered for select securities-class products. Operated BUSD under partnership with Binance until early 2023.
Badges: NYDFS Trust Company · Monthly Withum Attestation · Strongest US Framework
Key features
- NYDFS limited-purpose trust charter (rare framework)
- Monthly attestation by Withum (PCAOB-registered)
- Direct redemption mechanism for verified institutional customers
- Native issuance on Ethereum
Pros
- Strongest US regulatory framework of any stablecoin issuer (NYDFS trust company)
- Reserves transparency materially better than Tether — comparable to USDC
- Long operating history (2018-) including the BUSD wind-down without USDP disruption
- Direct redemption mechanism for verified institutional customers
Cons
- Small market cap (~$300M) — limited liquidity vs USDT/USDC
- Less network-effect adoption than USDC/USDT
- NOT MiCA-compliant for EU customers (Paxos has explored MiCA but not currently licensed)
- Narrower cross-chain availability than the top-2 stablecoins
Historical incidents
- 2023-02: NYDFS ordered Paxos to stop issuing new BUSD (Binance USD). The order was about the Paxos-Binance contractual arrangement, NOT about BUSD's reserves integrity. Existing BUSD remained redeemable; Paxos conducted an orderly wind-down. USDP (Paxos's own stablecoin) was unaffected and continued operating normally.
Market context
- Market cap: $300M (2026-05-28)
- Issuer entity: Paxos Trust Company
- HQ: New York, USA
- Founded: 2018
- Token ticker: USDP
Compare with
- Circle (USDC) — Most-regulated major dollar stablecoin; only major fiat-backed stablecoin currently MiCA-compliant
- Tether (USDT) — Largest stablecoin by market cap; deepest global liquidity; NOT MiCA-compliant
Risk + safety analysis
For the full risk-factor breakdown including verdict tone, regulatory-status cards, historical-incidents timeline, and risk-class scoring, see Is USDP safe? — risk + safety analysis.
Where to read further
See all 8 stablecoin issuers ranked for the full comparison, MiCA-licensed crypto banks for the operator-side EU framework, and our full crypto-banks ranking for the platforms where stablecoins are actually held + transacted.
Disclaimer
This page is general information, not financial, investment, or legal advice. Stablecoin issuer disclosures, reserves composition, regulatory status, and redemption mechanics change continually; always verify directly with the issuer before allocating capital. See terms.