Stablecoins Surpass Card Giants

Stablecoins racked up over $27 trillion in transactions, rivaling major card networks and signaling a broad monetary shift.

Stablecoins have evolved significantly from their humble beginnings. Last year, they handled an eye-popping $27 trillion in transactions - more than Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA) combined.

What began as a crypto experiment has become the cornerstone of modern digital finance, linking everyone from traditional banks to whole national economies. Even Citibank is betting big on their future expectation that they could reach a $3.7 trillion market cap by 2030.

What explains this exponential growth? It’s this easy: sending money across borders has now become almost as simple as sending a text message. When instantly transferring money from Tokyo to Toronto is as unbureaucratic as that, it’s something people notice.

That’s why marquee players like Visa and Mastercard recently arrived at their own stablecoin options, and why you’re beginning to see stablecoin payment options crop up on big shopping sites.

Here’s a wild turn of events: Stablecoin companies like Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) are now among the largest holders of U.S. Treasury bills. Who would've thought? And thanks to DeFi, now even regular people can earn interest without needing an army of bankers.

Going forward, stablecoins are going to be as dull as swiping your debit card, but without the international headaches. Companies like Ankr are constructing the back-office infrastructure that can cater to millions of users around the world.

At this pace, our old, clunky way of moving money may soon make paper checks look like an advance in technology.

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