Noble’s strategic pivot to EVM
Noble, the stablecoin appchain that’s been operating within the Cosmos ecosystem, has made a significant announcement. They’re moving away from their Cosmos SDK framework to launch a standalone EVM Layer 1 blockchain. This change is scheduled to happen in the next few weeks, which feels like a pretty quick turnaround.
I think what’s interesting here is the timing. The team says the new EVM chain should start functioning around March 18th, though they haven’t made that date completely official yet. They’re planning to support the Cosmos blockchain in the short term during this transition, which makes sense from a practical standpoint.
Why the shift matters
Founder Jelena Djuric explained the reasoning in a way that feels honest. “Cosmos has been great for us over the past couple of years, but now it’s time for us to move forward,” she said. The team believes transitioning to EVM will let them build a better product and provide what they call a “solid foundation” for developers.
Their goal seems to be shifting from being just one application to becoming infrastructure that others can build upon. They want to be a stablecoin and foreign exchange platform that serves as a base layer. That’s a different ambition than what they’ve had before.
The current position and future plans
Noble has established itself as a significant player in the stablecoin space. They’ve worked with several major real-world asset issuers like Circle, Hashnote, and Ondo Finance. Since 2023, the network has handled more than $22 billion in transaction volume across 50 chains. That’s not insignificant.
The team has publicized intentions to introduce real end-user stablecoin applications. They’re looking at collaborations across DeFi, privacy features, corporate use cases, and payment systems. Foreign exchange and autonomous payment flows are specifically mentioned as areas of focus.
Technical details and implementation
For the new EVM Layer 1, the team says they’ll use what they’re calling the “advanced Commonware stack” along with a Proof of Authority validator set focused on institutions. They’re aiming for sub-second finality for real-world stablecoin applications, which would be quite fast if they can achieve it.
Their Treasury-backed USDN stablecoin, which launched in 2024 using M^0’s technology, will play a key role in the new EVM chain’s development. This stablecoin is built on what they describe as a “composable yield foundation” that generates yields.
To make this work, they plan to incorporate a managed vault on the Noble EVM that uses a Pendle strategy implemented on HyperEVM. The idea is to maximize income for depositors through this setup.
In a blog post, Noble mentioned that the new chain will also receive backing from an innovative DeFi protocol designed to ease foreign exchange swaps between US dollar and euro stablecoins. That could be useful for cross-border transactions.
What strikes me about this move is how it represents a broader trend in blockchain development. Projects sometimes need to change their underlying technology as their goals evolve. Noble started as an interoperability provider and neutral liquidity hub within Cosmos, but now they’re aiming for something more independent and focused specifically on stablecoin infrastructure.
The response from the crypto community has been mixed, with some expressing excitement and others questioning the sudden change. But perhaps that’s just how things go in this space – adaptation is constant.
