Visa Thinks Stablecoins Can Break Into the $40 Trillion Credit Market

Key Points

  • Visa Report on Stablecoins: Visa's latest report highlights the potential for stablecoins to transform the $40 trillion global credit market by enabling traditional institutions to integrate blockchain-based, programmable money systems.**
  • Stablecoin Lending Growth: Stablecoins have facilitated $670 billion in lending over the past five years, with 1.1 million unique borrowers and an average loan size increasing from $76,000 to $121,000 in August.**
  • Market Dominance: Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT dominate stablecoin borrowing, representing 98% of the market, with a combined market cap of $257 billion out of the total $307 billion.**
  • Regulatory and Market Trends: The stablecoin market cap has grown by $100 billion this year, supported by the GENIUS Act, which provides a regulatory framework for U.S.-issued stablecoins.**
  • Concerns and Incidents: Despite growth, the IMF warns of risks like excessive leverage in stablecoin adoption, while incidents like Paxos minting and burning $300 trillion in PayPal USD highlight operational challenges.**

Summary

Visa's recent report underscores the transformative potential of stablecoins in the $40 trillion global credit market, suggesting they could enable traditional financial institutions to adopt blockchain-based systems for programmable money. Over the past five years, stablecoins have driven $670 billion in lending, with 1.1 million borrowers and average loan sizes rising to $121,000. Dominated by Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT, which hold 98% of the borrowing market, the stablecoin market cap has surged by $100 billion this year to $307 billion, bolstered by the GENIUS Act’s regulatory framework for U.S.-issued stablecoins. Predictions on platforms like Myriad suggest the market could reach $360 billion by early 2026. However, the International Monetary Fund cautions against risks such as excessive leverage and maturity mismatches in financial systems due to stablecoin adoption. Additionally, operational hiccups, like Paxos mistakenly minting and burning $300 trillion in PayPal USD, highlight industry challenges, though no security breaches or customer fund losses were reported. Visa sees stablecoin integration as both an opportunity and a necessity for financial institutions navigating evolving credit markets.

yahoo
October 16, 2025
Crypto
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