Stablecoin

A new financial architecture is forming underneath the world's largest pools of capital. The winners will be those who recognize that standards built now will define economic value transfer for a generation.

After a slump of several years, there's been a renewal of payment and financial tech firms going public.

The recent initial public offering of cryptocurrency exchange Bullish was remarkable in that the company received the proceeds in stablecoins. The move could signal a revolution in finance.

The dollar-backed digital assets have to clear many hurdles before they find a place in the future of finance, speakers at a Columbia University event said.

The crypto company's x402 Foundation will standardize transactions, making the company one of many technology firms working on standards for AI-powered commerce.

PayPal agrees to a $7 billion BNPL loan purchase agreement with Blue Owl Capital, while Revolut, which is building a financial superapp, is looking for permission to offer more banking products. That and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.

There's no designated lender of last resort for nonbank stablecoin issuers in either the recently-passed stablecoin bill or the crypto market structure bill being considered, which experts say could mean bailouts down the road.

Excluded from the stablecoin revolution by law, banks deserve the opportunity to participate in the evolution of digital finance. Regulatory clarity on the treatment of tokenized deposits is an essential first step.

Stablecore, a recently founded fintech, completed its first funding round with the goal of bringing stablecoin technology to banks and credit unions.

The Treasury Department proposed a rule delaying investment adviser AML requirements to 2028 and sought public comment on implementing regulations for a stablecoin bill passed earlier this summer.

The payments company has used an acquisition of digital asset firm Bridge to gain ground, reminiscent of how fintechs have honed in on banks' payment turf for years.

Stablecoins don't compete with payment platforms. They do, however, provide a turbo-powered springboard for new projects that will, just as incumbents are adapting to the new tools.

St. Cloud Financial Credit Union will be issuing its own stablecoin at the end of this year, becoming one of the first U.S. credit unions to do so.

The Bank of England may cap ownership, drawing ire from crypto groups that claim that will hinder innovation.

Starting Tuesday, the Spanish bank is allowing retail clients in Germany to trade Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, Polygon and Cardano. Openbank will expand the number of available tokens over the coming months. 

The payment company has made a series of moves to bolster its stablecoin and other coins to build a market for digital assets. Its Links feature adds to the strategy.

Google has launched its Agent Payments Protocol, an open protocol that establishes a payment-agnostic framework for users, merchants and payments in agentic AI. Payment companies such as Adyen, American Express, Mastercard and PayPal helped develop the protocol.

The world's largest stablecoin issuer is preparing to launch USAT, its U.S.-regulated, dollar-backed stablecoin, by the end of the year, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino told reporters at an event in New York. Bo Hines was also named CEO of USAT.

The U.K.-based super app expanded its partnership with Google Cloud as it looks to advance account-to-account payments; Global Payments launches Genius platform in the U.K.; and more in this week's global payments roundup.

There is conclusive evidence that stablecoin adoption does not lead to deposit runoff at community banks. This should give bankers the confidence to grow their businesses by offering stablecoin-related services.