The coin, called “QCAD,” is a joint venture between crypto-asset manager 3iQ and blockchain firm Mavennet Systems. Five Canadian crypto exchanges have agreed to trade the coin. (CoinDesk)

Talking point: QCAD is hitting the market as a growing number of central banks, including the Bank of Canada, are looking into issuing digital coins pegged to their currencies. Other stablecoins have launched and failed in Canada, and while the firm issuing the coin said it has a legal opinion that it does not violate securities law, there’s no guarantee it won’t run into regulatory issues. This launch could also be a test case for new guidelines from the Canadian Securities Administrators, which state that securities law covers most cryptocurrency exchanges. Stablecoins are increasingly popular; the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange recently won a number of patents for stablecoins that could be issued by banks, and Tether recently launched one pegged to gold.