Stripe and Paradigm’s collaborative blockchain initiative, Tempo, has announced the launch of its first public testnet, signaling a major milestone in the development of its upcoming layer-1 blockchain platform. This open-source testnet is now accessible to the public, allowing participants to run nodes, synchronize the chain, and experiment with various features, bringing the project closer to its operational goals.
The launch signals the start of the next development phase focused on scaling, ensuring reliability, and enhancing user integration. Tempo plans to onboard additional infrastructure partners, refine its features, and conduct rigorous stress tests to optimize throughput under typical payment scenarios. This iterative process aims to solidify Tempo’s functionality ahead of a full network deployment.
The announcement outlined six key features currently live on the testnet, including dedicated payment lanes, stablecoin-native gas fees, an integrated stable asset decentralized exchange, detailed payment metadata, fast deterministic finality, and modern wallet signing methods. These capabilities are designed to make Tempo a robust platform for financial applications, delivering instant settlement, low fees, and a seamless stablecoin experience—traits that many general-purpose blockchains often struggle to achieve, according to the project.
Key Testnet Features and Stablecoin Integration
Following the testnet launch, Paradigm CTO and general partner Georgios Konstantopoulos highlighted a notable feature enabling users to create stablecoins directly through their browsers. These stablecoins will utilize Tempo’s TIP-20 token standard, although specific liquidity and collateral requirements for the mainnet launch remain undisclosed in current documentation.
Growing Momentum and Strategic Partnerships
Since its unveiling four months prior, Tempo has gained significant traction, raising $500 million at a $5 billion valuation and attracting high-profile industry partners. Early supporters included OpenAI, Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered, and Shopify, exemplifying broad institutional interest in the project’s potential.
Recently, Tempo expanded its alliance network by onboarding additional industry leaders such as Mastercard, UBS, Kalshi, and Klarna. Notably, Klarna, the EU-licensed buy-now-pay-later giant, launched a USD-pegged stablecoin on the network last month, becoming the first digital banking service to do so within the Tempo ecosystem.
As Tempo advances through its testnet phase, the project underscores its objective to deliver a blockchain platform optimized for financial services, with features that support the demands of real-time payments, low-cost transactions, and stablecoin issuance, positioning itself as a promising infrastructure player amid a rapidly evolving crypto landscape.