Author of the article:Chris Dixon

Article Compilation: Block unicorn

Chris Dixon is a general partner of a16z and leads its crypto investment division.

The internet has globalized information, and cryptocurrency is having a similar effect on money. While recent headlines may focus on Bitcoin prices, a deeper, more lasting transformation is happening in the digital payments space. This year, stablecoins—cryptocurrencies pegged to assets like the dollar—are gradually becoming the mainstream choice for online and international payments.

One might call it the “WhatsApp moment” for the currencyworld. Just as chat apps like WhatsApp have reduced the cost of international text messages from about 30 cents to zero, stablecoins are playing a similar role in financial transactions. Data backs this up: last year, after excluding bots and other irrational trading, stablecoin transactions exceeded $12 trillion—an amount approaching Visa's $17 trillion volume last year, but at a much lower cost.

In this process, stablecoins are bringing the original vision of openness and interoperability of the internet into the financial realm. Given that blockchain technology allows for programming of stablecoins, money is effectively becoming software.

While most stablecoin transactions currently stem from “crypto-native”and global business activities rather than everyday consumer spending, this is changing. As more improvements are introduced, such as integrations with more traditional financial partners aimed at facilitating user transactions, the widespread adoption of stablecoins will follow.

When people around the world transact with stablecoins, they barely notice that they are using stablecoins. Most would think they are simply using dollars. This is indeed the case, as the distinction between stablecoins and dollars has become very abstract forend users. Since each token is backed by one dollar or an equivalent asset, the name itself does not matter. What matters is that this product is more reliable than any payment technology before, almost free, and settles much faster, almost instantly.

Stablecoins also exhibit the infinite possibilities that can arise when policy and technology align. Last year’s Genius Act provided clear rules for US stablecoins. More importantly, Congress is currently considering the Clarity Act, which aims to regulate the broader blockchain networks and digital asset ecosystems that support stablecoins. The Clarity Act will help determine whether these networks can scale to become part of global financial infrastructure or will stagnate.

When challengers are provided a fair competitive environment and space for innovation, the market works its magic. The internet overcame traditional giants through this power; the United States has dominated the internet thanks to this power; and stablecoins will surpass today’s payment systems through this power.

Companies are beginning to recognize the advantages of stablecoins. Some of the largest technology companies, banks, and retailers globally are actively promoting the use of stablecoins, or like Fidelity, have already issued their stablecoin. Payment giant Stripe has acquired several cryptocurrency companies in the past year or so, now supporting stablecoins at checkout, instantly reducing payment processing fees from about 3% to 1.5%, with much room for further reduction.

SpaceX is utilizing stablecoins to transfer funds from local banking systems in countries like Argentina and Nigeria, where the systems are fragile or strictly capital-controlled. Some companies are using stablecoins to pay their global employees’ salaries more quickly. Ultimately, the internet could transform into an open market where machine-to-machine transactions will flourish, and AI agents will trade and settle on behalf of users in real time.

The popularization of stablecoins will also create an often-underestimated second-order effect: these tokens reinforce the dollar's dominance in a multipolar world, generating strong new demand for US government bonds. Leading stablecoin issuers like Circle and Tether currently hold nearly $140 billion in short-term US government bonds directly, making them among the top 20 holders of US debt today.

If the adoption of stablecoins continues to grow at its current pace, by next year, stablecoin holdings will leap into the top 10. (Citi Research even predicts that by 2030, the number of US government bonds held by stablecoins could exceed those held by foreign governments and commercial banks.)

This is not just about payments; it’s about the restructuring of the global financial landscape. The internet has given us borderless communication; stablecoins will give us borderless value transfer. With clear rules and a robust market structure, they can become the pipelines and pillars of a new financial system.

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