The Scope of Stablecoins: Eight Real Uses Beyond Crypto Trading

If you only follow crypto headlines, you'd think stablecoins exist so traders have somewhere to park money between bets. That was true in 2019. By 2026, the most interesting stablecoin activity has almost nothing to do with trading.

1. Business-to-business payments

This is the quiet giant. Of the roughly $390 billion in genuine stablecoin payments in 2025, most was companies paying other companies: about $226 billion by McKinsey and Artemis's estimate, with B2B volume up more than sevenfold on the year. Importers paying suppliers, platforms paying sellers, firms moving money between their own subsidiaries. Same-day settlement, any day of the week, is a huge deal for a business that used to wait three days for a wire.

2. Remittance and money transfer

The use case everyone predicted, finally arriving. Visa lists remittances among the areas where stablecoins fit best, and remittance brands like MoneyGram have launched their own. The win is the middle of the journey: fewer banks in the chain, no weekend delays.

3. Paying bills across borders

A natural next step from remittance: instead of sending money for the bill, pay the bill. Stablecoin settlement lets bill-payment providers pay billers in other countries quickly and cheaply, so the family abroad can settle the electricity bill directly.

4. Cards you can spend anywhere

Stablecoin-linked cards now work in more than 50 markets on Visa's network alone. You hold digital dollars; the shop gets paid in its local currency. For freelancers paid in dollars and travellers who hate conversion fees, it's a practical bridge to everyday spending.

5. Payroll and freelancer payouts

Companies with remote teams across dozens of countries are paying contractors in stablecoins, who then convert locally when they want to. It's faster and often cheaper than international payroll, especially in countries where local currencies are volatile.

6. A dollar savings account for people who don't have one

In countries with high inflation, holding a stable digital dollar on your phone can protect savings in a way the local bank can't. This is one of the most human uses of the technology, and one where regulation matters most.

For many families, a stablecoin isn't an investment. It's the first dollar account they've ever been allowed to have.

7. Treasury and liquidity for companies

Corporate treasurers are starting to hold some cash as stablecoins so they can move it instantly between markets. Ripple's billion-dollar purchase of a treasury software company is a bet on exactly this.

8. The base layer for tokenised everything

Tokenised money-market funds, bonds, gold and real estate all need a stable unit to trade against. On Stellar alone, tokenised real-world assets grew to about $3 billion in the first half of 2026. Stablecoins are the cash register of that new market.

What could slow it down

• On and off ramps. Converting to and from local money is still the expensive, regulated bottleneck.
• Fragmented rules. A coin allowed in one country may be restricted in another.
• User experience. Wallet addresses, networks and gas fees still confuse people. Services that hide all of it will have an edge.

The scope of stablecoins turns out to be the scope of money itself. The technology is ready. What's left is making the experience ordinary enough that people never have to think about it, and that is the part worth watching.

About this researchMuffinPay InsightsIndependent analysis of stablecoins, CBDCs, cross-border payments and digital public infrastructure. Every figure is linked to its source. Read our editorial standards →