160M CELO Allocation Proposal To Grow Opera From Distribution Partner into Key Network Stakeholder

Rhea-AI Summary

Opera (NASDAQ: OPRA) and Celo Core Co. announced a commercial framework to deepen their partnership, proposing a 160 million CELO allocation to Opera subject to Celo community governance approval. The three-year agreement would move Opera from distribution partner to a network stakeholder and support MiniPay expansion.

MiniPay has 14 million account registrations, 420 million transactions, and Celo reports 700,000+ daily active users for USD₮ on its Layer 2. Over 50 million Opera users have earned rewards positioned to redeem as USD₮, creating a near-term growth catalyst.

Positive

• 160M CELO allocation proposed to Opera
• 420M transactions processed via MiniPay
• 14M account registrations on MiniPay
• 700K+ Daily Active Users for USD₮ on Celo

Negative

• Allocation is subject to Celo community governance approval, not final
• Three-year allocation depends on governance vote, creating execution uncertainty

Key Figures

CELO allocation: 160M CELO MiniPay accounts: 14M account registrations MiniPay transactions: 420M transactions +5 more

8 metrics

CELO allocation 160M CELO Proposed grant to Opera for distribution services

MiniPay accounts 14M account registrations MiniPay usage on Celo blockchain

MiniPay transactions 420M transactions Transactions facilitated on Celo blockchain via MiniPay

Opera users with rewards Over 50 million users Eligible to redeem rewards as USD₮ in MiniPay

Celo daily active users 700,000+ DAUs Cited for Celo’s Layer 2 activity

Weekly active USD₮ users 4.23+ million users Weekly active USD₮ users on Celo

MiniPay countries 66+ countries Geographic reach of MiniPay wallet

Agreement term Three-year agreement Opera–Celo partnership duration

Market Reality Check

Price: $14.62 Vol: Volume 259,577 vs 20-day ...

low vol

$14.62 Last Close

Volume Volume 259,577 vs 20-day average 717,022 (about 0.36x normal activity). low

Technical Shares at $14.62, trading below 200-day MA of $15.87 and 30.58% under the 52-week high.

Peers on Argus

OPRA fell 1.22% while several peers were also weak (e.g., BMBL -5.26%, FVRR -2.4...

1 Up

OPRA fell 1.22% while several peers were also weak (e.g., BMBL -5.26%, FVRR -2.41%, WBTN -2%), but momentum scans only flagged FVRR on the upside, suggesting this move is more stock-specific than a clear sector rotation.

Historical Context

5 past events · Latest: Feb 26 (Positive)

Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Feb 26	Earnings & buyback	Positive	+23.4%	Beat Q4 and 2025 expectations and launched a $300M share repurchase program.
Feb 02	MiniPay/crypto expansion	Positive	+13.5%	Expanded USDT and Tether Gold support in MiniPay with strong usage metrics.
Feb 02	Guidance raise	Positive	+13.5%	Pre-announced Q4 revenue and EBITDA above guidance with >26% full-year growth.
Jan 15	Product update	Positive	+4.7%	Launched Opera One R3 with AI, tab, and UI upgrades targeting engagement.
Jan 09	Investor conference	Positive	-5.1%	Announced CFO presentation at Needham Growth Conference with webcast access.

Pattern Detected

OPRA has recently shown strong positive reactions to operational and MiniPay/crypto news, with one divergence on a conference appearance.

Recent Company History

Over recent months, Opera has delivered multiple strong updates. On Feb 26, 2026, it reported Q4 and 2025 results ahead of expectations and launched a $300M buyback, with the stock up 23.38%. Earlier in February, pre-announced upside to Q4 and 2025 metrics and a Tether–MiniPay expansion each coincided with 13.53% gains. Product innovation (Opera One R3) saw a smaller 4.68% rise, while an investor conference on Jan 9, 2026 led to a 5.08% decline, showing not all positive news drives upside.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement deepens Opera’s strategic role in the Celo ecosystem through a proposed 160M CELO ...

Analysis

This announcement deepens Opera’s strategic role in the Celo ecosystem through a proposed 160M CELO allocation tied to MiniPay distribution. It highlights meaningful traction, including 14M MiniPay account registrations, 420M transactions, and potential redemption by over 50M Opera users. In context of Opera’s earlier strong earnings and MiniPay updates, investors may watch governance approval, subsequent usage growth, and how this three-year framework supports future monetization.

Key Terms

layer 2, stablecoin, self-custodial, phone number-to-wallet mapping, +2 more

6 terms

layer 2 technical

"Celo, the leading Layer 2 by Daily Active Users with 700K+"

Layer 2 is a secondary system built on top of a blockchain that handles transactions or computations off the main ledger to make the network faster and cheaper, like adding express lanes beside a busy highway so cars move more smoothly without rebuilding the road. For investors, layer 2 matters because it can increase real-world use, lower user fees, and change demand for tokens or services tied to the underlying blockchain, affecting project value and adoption risk.

stablecoin financial

"accessible stablecoin payments following the launch of MiniPay in September 2023"

A stablecoin is a type of digital currency designed to keep its value steady, often by being backed by traditional assets like money or commodities. For investors, stablecoins offer a reliable way to move money quickly across digital platforms without the value fluctuations common with other cryptocurrencies, making them useful for saving, trading, or transferring funds with less risk of sudden losses.

self-custodial technical

"expanded the self-custodial stablecoin wallet to serve 66+ countries"

Self-custodial describes a setup where an individual or entity holds and controls their own assets or credentials directly, rather than trusting a third party to store them. For investors, it means you have full control and responsibility—like holding the only key to a safe: greater autonomy and potentially lower counterparty risk, but also greater responsibility for secure storage, loss recovery, and personal security practices.

phone number-to-wallet mapping technical

"and phone number-to-wallet mapping, which abstracts the complexity"

A phone number-to-wallet mapping connects a person’s mobile phone number with their digital currency or payment account so money can be sent and received using a familiar contact like a phonebook entry instead of a long cryptographic address. Investors should care because this convenience can drive faster user adoption and transaction volume, yet it also creates privacy, security and regulatory risks (fraud, identity exposure, and compliance obligations) that can affect a service’s growth and liability.

mainnet technical

"Launched on mainnet Earth Day 2020 with architecture optimized for mobile-first"

The mainnet is the live, operational blockchain where real tokens, transactions, and smart contracts run and have actual economic value. Think of it as the public road where vehicles carry customers and goods rather than a private test track; for investors, a project launching or migrating to mainnet signals higher maturity, real usage, and exposure to operational risks, token supply changes, and network security that can affect value.

erc-20 tokens technical

"pay transaction costs in ERC-20 tokens like stablecoins rather than a native gas token"

ERC-20 tokens are digital assets created to run on the Ethereum blockchain using a shared set of technical rules, so different tokens, wallets and exchanges can work together like apps that all follow the same phone operating system. They matter to investors because these tokens can represent ownership, access, or value and are easily traded or used in automated contracts; knowing the standard helps assess how easily a token can be stored, moved, or integrated into markets and services.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

• Subject to Celo community governance approval, Opera will receive an allocation of 160M CELO as a grant for distribution services, further deepening Opera's alignment with the long-term success of Celo, the leading Layer 2 by Daily Active Users with 700K+
• Opera's MiniPay leverages Celo's fast, low-cost payment rails, and unique technical benefits like fee abstraction and phone number mapping resulting in 14M account registrations and 420M transactions on Celo blockchain
• Over 50 million Opera users who have earned rewards in recent months to redeem them as USD₮ on MiniPay, accelerating the wallet's growth on Celo

OSLO, Norway, March 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Opera (NASDAQ: OPRA), a leading global browser and AI agent company, and Celo Core Co., stewards of Celo, the Ethereum Layer 2 built for the real world with the leading programmable rails for global finance, today announced the commercial framework for their continued partnership, subject to Celo community governance approval. The partnership model is based on an allocation of 160 million CELO to Opera, which will in turn enable Opera's continued deep integration and distribution of Celo stablecoins and, further establishing Opera's long-term incentive to support the success of the ecosystem as a key stakeholder.

The agreed terms have been submitted to the Celo community forum for approval, consistent with the network's decentralized treasury governance model. The restructured terms reflect the scale and maturity of the partnership, and Opera's genuine belief in and commitment to the long-term value of the Celo ecosystem and its native governance token, CELO.

The announcement marks the latest development in Opera's nearly five-year partnership with the Celo ecosystem, which began in June 2021. From this early partnership milestone, Opera and key Celo contributors have driven rapid adoption of accessible stablecoin payments following the launch of MiniPay in September 2023. In December 2025, Opera and Celo announced an extension of their strategic partnership to provide financial inclusion to a billion people by 2030.

Since MiniPay's launch, Opera and Celo have expanded the self-custodial stablecoin wallet to serve 66+ countries, facilitating over 420 million transactions, and growing to more than 14 million account registrations. With MiniPay as a core driver, Celo has emerged as the leading global financial rails for everyday stablecoin adoption, positioned as the leading Ethereum Layer 2 by daily active users and strongest transport layer for USD₮ with 700,000+ Daily Active Users and 4.23+ million Weekly Active USD₮ Users.

That growth reflects the fit between MiniPay's target markets and the payment infrastructure Celo was purpose-built to provide. Launched on mainnet Earth Day 2020 with architecture optimized for mobile-first, real-world financial use cases, Celo offers a full suite of tools optimized for speed, low cost, and accessibility at scale. Among the most consequential features for consumer adoption are fee abstraction, which allows users to pay transaction costs in ERC-20 tokens like stablecoins rather than a native gas token, and phone number-to-wallet mapping, which abstracts the complexity for blockchain addresses.

The three-year agreement grows Opera from distribution partner to a network stakeholder, and aligns Opera's and MiniPay's success with the network's over the long run. The partnership also carries a significant near-term growth catalyst: over 50 million Opera browser users have earned rewards and are positioned to redeem them as USD₮ within MiniPay.

"Our partnership with Opera has evolved significantly over nearly five years, and we're proud to take this next step together as our joint mission of accessible, effective stablecoin solutions becomes a reality for users worldwide," said Rene Reinsberg, Celo co-founder. "The path toward a billion-dollar onchain economy has never been so clear, and Opera's belief in CELO reaffirms our joint commitment to the ecosystem reaching this goal."

"Celo's infrastructure and mission-aligned ecosystem have been instrumental in our work building and scaling powerful mobile financial technology with MiniPay," said Jørgen Arnesen, EVP Mobile, Opera. "Through this continued partnership, we're making a long-term commitment to the Celo ecosystem and to bringing that utility to our global user base."

Opera and Celo Core Co. will build their presence in Latin America and Southeast Asia with a roadshow to drive grassroots adoption and grow the Mini App ecosystem, beginning in Vietnam and the Philippines next month.

To learn more about Celo and Opera, visit celo.org and opera.com.

Download MiniPay on Google Play and iOS App Store today.

About Opera
Opera is a user-centric and innovative software company focused on enabling the best possible internet browsing experience across devices. Hundreds of millions of people use Opera browsers for their unique features on mobile phones and desktop computers. Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Opera is publicly listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol OPRA. Download Opera browsers and other Opera products at opera.com. Learn more at investor.opera.com.

About Celo
Celo is an Ethereum Layer-2 and mobile-first blockchain network built for the real world and designed for fast, low-cost payments worldwide. The Celo ecosystem consists of a decentralized, proof-of-stake blockchain technology stack, the CELO native token, USDC and USDT (both enabled as gas currencies), several Mento stable assets (USDm, EURm, REALm, XOFm), and popular infrastructure including Morpho, Aave, Uniswap V3, Curve, Velodrome, and Chainlink. Launched on Earth Day in 2020, the open-source Celo mainnet supports a rich ecosystem of projects (1,000+) contributing to Celo's global mission of prosperity for all. For more about Celo, visit https://celo.org/. 

About MiniPay
MiniPay is a non-custodial stablecoin wallet built on the Celo blockchain and designed to make digital finance accessible, affordable, and user-friendly – especially across emerging markets. MiniPay is offered by Blueboard Limited, an Opera company. Opera is publicly listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol OPRA. Learn more at investor.opera.com.

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SOURCE Opera Limited

FAQ

What did Opera (OPRA) and Celo announce on March 19, 2026 about CELO allocation?

They proposed a 160 million CELO allocation to Opera to deepen network alignment. According to Opera, the allocation is a grant for distribution services and requires Celo community governance approval before it becomes effective.

How many users and transactions does Opera MiniPay have on Celo as of March 2026?

MiniPay has over 14 million account registrations and >420 million transactions. According to Opera, these metrics reflect MiniPay's expansion across 66+ countries since its September 2023 launch.

What near-term growth catalyst did Opera cite related to user rewards and MiniPay?

More than 50 million Opera users have earned rewards positioned to redeem as USD₮ in MiniPay. According to Opera, this could accelerate wallet adoption and stablecoin usage among its global user base.

What role will Opera play in the Celo ecosystem under the new three-year agreement?

Opera will transition from a distribution partner to a network stakeholder aligned with Celo's long-term success. According to Opera, the agreement deepens integration of stablecoins and supports MiniPay distribution.

Is the 160M CELO allocation to Opera finalized and immediately transferable?

No, the allocation is not finalized; it is subject to Celo community governance approval. According to Celo Core Co., the terms have been submitted to the community forum consistent with decentralized treasury governance.