EuroFinance

For corporate treasurers, payments are rarely as seamless as they appear. Cross-border transactions remain mired in delays, high fees, opaque messaging, and unpredictable settlements. Stablecoins—long associated with the speculative fringes of cryptocurrency—are beginning to offer a serious alternative.

Dimitrios Psarrakis, senior fellow at the Wharton Blockchain and Digital Assets Project and former monetary policy specialist at the European Parliament, has watched this evolution unfold firsthand. “From the constellation of crypto assets, it is the stablecoins that grow really, really fast,” he said at the EuroFinance International Treasury & Cash Management Summit Miami. “And this is all utility-driven.”

According to Psarrakis in the last six years, the market capitalisation of stablecoins has ballooned from $2 billion to over $240 billion. Psarrakis attributed this growth to a mix of utility, regulatory clarity, institutional adoption, and successful addressing of pain points in traditional cross-border payments systems.

“Stablecoins market cap dominance rose to 8.02% as digital assets continue to show volatile price action in the midst of macroeconomic uncertainty,” according to the March 2025 Coindesk report.

Also read: Future of finance: CBDCs and a new era for money and global transactions

Why should treasury care?

Psarrakis described a hypothetical transaction: a Singapore-based company trying to pay a Malaysian supplier.  Despite the geographical proximity, the transaction might involve up to six banks in four different countries, four payment systems, multiple time zones, and layers of fees, delays, and regulatory checks.

“The payment goes west to the US and then all the way around the world to Malaysia,” he explained, calling it a “bet” rather than a guaranteed transaction. The delays, opacity, and unpredictability inherent in this system make a compelling case for alternatives.

Stablecoins, by contrast, offer the promise of reduced transaction costs, real-time settlement, improved visibility, and fewer intermediary banks. Psarrakis added: “Treasury should take notice because you need a payment system where settlement equals finality and messaging equals actual transfer.”

“Nature hates a vacuum,” Psarrakis added. “And treasury hates unpredictability. Stablecoins, if structured properly, offer a way to eliminate both.”

The promise and limits

Naresh Aggarwal, Associate director of policy and technical at the Association of Corporate Treasurers added, “I’ve been involved in panel discussions around the use of stablecoins, and I’m fully aware that one of their key use cases has been to reduce the cost of cross-border payments—not just in terms of fees, but also settlement time, transparency, visibility, and speed,” said Aggarwal.

“For many treasurers, the value of stablecoins—like with all new technologies—really depends on the specific problem they’re trying to solve,” Aggarwal told EuroFinance.

Aggarwal acknowledged stablecoin potential. “Without doubt, stablecoins do have the capacity to reduce friction,” he said. Still, a critical limitation was pointed out: the eventual need to convert stablecoins back into fiat currencies.

“So there is some issue around it,” he added. Within a broader digital currency ecosystem, stablecoins are viewed as a way to lower transaction costs, increase transparency, and improve settlement speed. Yet the underlying question remains: is the benefit compelling enough to justify the transition?

Also read:‘What problem are we solving?’—a treasurer’s most powerful FX question

Regulation is catching up—fast

“There are four areas regulators care about: consumer protection, systemic risk, money laundering, and monetary policy,” Psarrakis said. “But the main question is: does a stablecoin issuer look like a bank? And the answer is yes. They accept funds, invest in short-term securities, and must be ready to handle large redemptions.”

Stablecoins are still in search of regulatory clarity, but the environment is evolving. President Donald Trump recently signed the GENIUS Act into law on July 18th, aiming to regulate stablecoin issuance, investor protection, and market stability.

According to the press release from the White House, the GENIUS Act will play a key role in attracting more digital asset activity to the country by providing clear rules and promoting responsible innovation in the stablecoin market.

As the regulatory frameworks mature and institutional comfort grows, stablecoins are transitioning from crypto curiosity to financial tool. For treasury teams, the case is no longer if but when they will engage. In the words of Psarrakis, “We need a payment system where messaging is the actual payment, and settlement equals finality.”

What comes next for treasury

New types of stablecoins are being considered, with discussions extending beyond the US dollar to include euro- and sterling-based versions and the introduction of the GENIUS Act is expected to accelerate the number and scale of stablecoins in circulation.

However, Aggarwal expressed skepticism about widespread adoption in corporate cross-border transactions. “I’m still not convinced we’re going to see a large change in behaviour by businesses,” he noted.

Aggarwal suggested that stablecoins should be seen less as standalone solutions and more as enabling tools within the broader digital asset ecosystem. For treasurers exploring digital assets, stablecoins were described as valuable instruments for facilitating settlement—particularly in the context of tokenized deposits and other emerging digital initiatives.

He further clarified that stablecoins are not viewed as investment assets due to their limited capacity to generate yield. “I don’t see stablecoins as an investment option—they’re more akin to fiat currencies used for settlement,” he said.

Also read: “Uncertainty is here to stay” as Trump’s tariffs reshape trade policy

Are stablecoins the future of corporate cross-border payments—or still too complex for practical use?

We’d love to hear your thoughts. Email us at [email protected]—your perspective could be featured in a follow-up article.