A Stanford study of 41 million USDC transactions on Airtm, a Stellar-based digital wallet, demonstrates that stablecoins are already outperforming the G20's 2030 cross-border payment targets, with 96% of transactions settling in under an hour and proving digital payments work at scale for everyday users.
A Stanford University study analyzing 41 million USDC transactions on Airtm, a digital wallet built on Stellar, found that stablecoins are already exceeding the G20's 2030 cross-border payment targets by five years. The research showed 96% of transactions settled in under an hour, surpassing the G20's 75% goal, with nearly 42% of transactions under $10, demonstrating viability for everyday payments in emerging markets. Stablecoins on open blockchain networks like Stellar eliminate traditional banking intermediaries while maintaining dollar-backed stability, offering faster and cheaper alternatives to legacy systems that charge disproportionate fees to low-income users. The emerging payment infrastructure combines stablecoins as the value layer, blockchain as settlement, digital wallets as interface, and on/off-ramps for local currency conversion. Policymakers must establish clear regulatory frameworks around reserves and transparency rather than applying blanket skepticism to tools already delivering measurable financial inclusion at scale.
