Eric Barbier, CEO of Triple-A
For businesses around the world, stablecoins are emerging as a method for cross-border payments, offering faster settlement, lower cost, and greater accessibility compared to traditional alternatives. This is particularly true for transactions involving emerging markets, where stablecoins deliver clear advantages over the existing payment rails. They are rapidly becoming the foundation of how money moves across borders.
This shift is being driven in part by regulatory developments such as the passing of the GENIUS Act in the U.S., along with major payment players like Visa, Mastercard and PayPal getting into this space, including the June 2026 launch of Open USD, a jointly issued stablecoin backed by a consortium of more than 140 companies. Currency-backed digital assets have gone from being a fringe technology to a regular part of the conversation in cross-border payments.
Stablecoins enable users to transfer money and settle in real-time, addressing much of the friction that exists in cross-border transactions today, particularly in emerging markets. Businesses may need pre-payment or pre-funding with correspondent banks that rely on SWIFT, and banks and other intermediaries tend to sit on money for days before it reaches its destination. Stablecoins remove several of these steps, and the technology is finding multiple uses outside of simple remittances, including in supplier payments, settlement between global entities, treasury transfers and marketplace payouts.
A staple of business
Global trade is becoming more digital and more borderless, and as these barriers break down, stablecoins are positioned to become a major payment rail for B2B transactions around the world. Payment providers are helping to make this more seamless, helping enterprises to switch to adopting stablecoins, as well as helping to manage custody, conversion, and compliance.
Consumer-facing businesses are adopting stablecoins as well, particularly in sectors where digital currency holders make up a meaningful share of the customer base. In gaming and the creator economy, platforms such as G2G and OffGamers accept stablecoin payments from a global user base already accustomed to holding digital currency. In the luxury and travel sectors, platforms such as Farfetch and Wego have added stablecoin payments alongside traditional methods, reflecting demand from a customer base that increasingly holds digital currency.
Paying suppliers
Professionals in emerging markets are increasingly paid in stablecoins by global clients, and many choose to hold those funds in US dollar-backed stablecoins rather than convert to their local currency, which is not ideal for savings and might be harder to transact with.
The same logic applies to businesses that operate internationally to pay suppliers, creators, and gig workers to pay directly in stablecoins in markets with less stable currencies. In many countries, global freelancers now prefer to hold US dollar-backed stablecoins rather than local currencies, which may fluctuate or may mean that transactions are more difficult.
Beyond being paid in stablecoins, there are multiple reasons customers might prefer to pay in stablecoins: for example, local cards issued in Africa and Latin America are often declined in international payments due to high risk of chargeback. For businesses operating across borders, stablecoins also provide a way to minimize the costs of holding accounts in multiple key markets, making it easier and more cost-effective to transfer both in and out.
A global dollar
One of the main things that stablecoins provide is that they enable anyone on the planet to own US dollar-denominated accounts. In many markets, currency forms an artificial barrier to joining the global economy, creating friction for both individuals and companies alike. Stablecoins enable businesses to pay workers efficiently, and allow those workers to participate in global markets regardless of their local currency.
For companies handling cross-border B2B payments, stablecoins offer near-instant payments and smooth transactions where one party is in a jurisdiction with capital controls. Holding some funds in dollar stablecoins, rather than converting to local currency or keeping cash at home, gives companies more flexibility to move that money internationally when needed, since capital controls can make it difficult to convert local currency back into foreign funds once it has entered the domestic system.
Smarter payments
Global payments are changing, and despite previous long-held resistance to stablecoins, they are now becoming a more established part of how companies and individuals move money across the border, without delays and with lower costs compared to traditional banking rails.
Stablecoin infrastructure has matured significantly this year, with MiCA now fully in force in Europe and the GENIUS Act marking its first year in the U.S. This regulatory clarity is helping stablecoins address long-standing inefficiencies in the global banking system. For cross-border payments, stablecoins are becoming an increasingly common choice.
About The Author
Eric Barbier is the Founder and CEO of Triple-A, a global payment institution licensed in the United States, Europe, and Singapore, specializing in stablecoin-based payment solutions for businesses worldwide. With 20+ years of experience in mobile and payments, he also founded Mobile 365 (acquired by SAP) and cross-border payments platform TransferTo (now Thunes and DTOne).
