Zug-based fintech Plusplus is launching three investment products. They are based on the Swiss franc stablecoin Frankencoin (ZCHF). The offering includes a treasury solution for companies, an exchange traded product (ETP) for investors, and a rental deposit product developed jointly with startup Zinsli.
The products promise returns of around 4 percent. Plusplus is targeting an investment volume of 20 million francs by the end of 2026. The market for Swiss franc stablecoins remains small. Regulation is in flux, and the risks of decentralized systems deter some investors.
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Frankencoin: overcollateralized, but with soft peg
Frankencoin operates differently from other stablecoins. Tether or USDC back their tokens with dollar reserves. ZCHF instead uses a decentralized credit position system. Users deposit crypto assets as collateral and mint ZCHF against them. The current overcollateralization ratio stands at around 230 percent: with a money supply of 22 million ZCHF, collateral worth over 50 million francs backs the system.
The system does not guarantee a hard 1:1 peg to the franc. Instead, Frankencoin uses a soft peg based on economic incentives. Governance operates through FPS tokens. Their holders can veto new collateral types with just 2 percent of voting power. The system assumes these actors will act in the interest of stability.
Frankencoin forgoes external price oracles like Chainlink. This makes it more independent but slows the liquidation process when collateral values fall. It is therefore less suitable for highly volatile collateral types.
Partnership with Plusplus
Behind the product offering stands Plusplus AG, headquartered in Zug. CEO Benjamin Rossi and CTO Matthias Nadler lead the company. Rossi brings a background as an ETH engineer and former NZZ journalist. Nadler earned his doctorate in decentralized finance (DeFi) and co-authored publications with Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin.
Plusplus is a member of the self-regulatory organization VQF. The company does not issue Frankencoin itself but builds financial products on the existing stablecoin. The Frankencoin Association handles ZCHF governance.
The three products in detail
The Plusplus treasury product targets companies looking to manage excess liquidity. Instead of parking funds in bank accounts with negative interest rates, firms can earn yields via Frankencoin. The stated 4 percent exceeds current money market fund levels. Companies also bear smart contract risks, liquidity risks, and the market risk of a soft peg system.
The ETP aims to give institutional and retail investors access to the Frankencoin ecosystem. Details on structure, trading venue, and fees are not yet available. ETPs on crypto assets are established in Switzerland. A product on a decentralized, relatively small stablecoin is a novelty.
Plusplus is developing the rental deposit product together with startup Zinsli. Market launch is planned for the second quarter of 2026. Zinsli operates the first digital platform for rental deposits in Switzerland and already works with Glarner Kantonalbank. The market potential is substantial: an estimated 10 to 11 billion francs sit in traditional rental deposit accounts.
Frankencoin in broader context
Frankencoin is not an isolated project. Founder Luzius Meisser, a board member at Bitcoin Suisse and crypto pioneer since 2011, developed the whitepaper as a dissertation at the University of Zurich. The Frankencoin Association, a nonprofit organization in Zug, drives development forward. Johannes Kern has led operations since early 2025.
Last year, Frankencoin expanded to eight blockchains, including Ethereum, Base, and Arbitrum. Partnerships with Mt Pelerin enable buying and selling against fiat currencies. A Visa card through Gnosis Pay allows payments with ZCHF balances.
A market with failed predecessors
The Swiss franc stablecoin market has seen several attempts. Bitcoin Suisse discontinued the CryptoFranc (XCHF) in August 2024. The reasoning: strategic focus on crypto investment services. Around 270,000 XCHF remained in circulation at discontinuation. Sygnum Bank offers the Digital CHF (DCHF), a bank-licensed stablecoin with 1:1 backing through SNB deposits. This primarily serves as a settlement token for its own clients.
Frankencoin claims to rank eighth globally among non-dollar stablecoins. This sounds better than it is: dollar stablecoins dominate the market with over 99 percent share. With a global stablecoin volume exceeding 300 billion dollars, Frankencoin's 22 million francs represent a negligible fraction.
