Stablecoins in Global Payments

Financial Firms and Networks Integrate Stablecoins Into Global Payment Infrastructure

Financial firms and payments networks are exploring ways to make international transfers faster and easier, through both familiar bank-linked payment systems and stablecoins. Swift is working with banks and payment providers to extend domestic services such as Bizum, PayID and Pix across borders, letting consumers use aliases like phone numbers and email addresses instead of account details. Separately, Volante and Circle are integrating USDC workflows into existing bank payment infrastructure so financial institutions can test stablecoin settlement alongside traditional payment rails and controls. Speakers at a Seoul conference said stablecoins may gain traction first in emerging markets and remittances, where weaker banking connections can make conventional cross-border transfers slow and costly; one business executive also described using stablecoins alongside SWIFT transfers for global fund management. A related challenge is uneven stablecoin liquidity: South Korean exchanges record far less trading than major overseas platforms, which use stablecoins broadly across trading, rewards and other services.

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