DIGITAL ASSETS
Given that 90 % of financial institutions prioritise speed over cost savings in stablecoins, what does this shift mean for how we approach cross-border payment strategies?
Jeremy McDougall, Strategic Solution Consulting Director at ACI Worldwide Stablecoins are reshaping cross-border payment strategies by shifting the focus from cost-efficiency to speed, flexibility, and reliability. This change means financial institutions must move beyond traditional corridors and embrace realtime orchestration across multiple payment rails.
The reason is clear: the programmability functionality that stablecoins enable, allows for the pain points seen in traditional correspondent banking to be identified and addressed prior to settlement. In addition, stablecoins enable settlement in minutes and can reduce transaction costs by up to 80 % compared to legacy systems. But more importantly, they bypass fragile local banking infrastructure, as seen in Africa where private firms are using stablecoins to pay foreign suppliers quickly and reliably.
Retno Widuri, Head of Crypto, at Unlimit For decades, cross-border payments were about cutting fees. Now speed has become the new currency in global transactions. Faster speeds mean greater working capital. This in turn enables businesses to maintain smoother daily operations and affords them the liquidity to remain flexible to new opportunities.
Jeremy McDougall, Strategic Solution
Consulting Director, ACI Worldwide
But speed is only as good as the infrastructure behind it. For stablecoins to deliver on their promise, businesses need rails that offer instant conversion, robust custody, and built-in compliance. When these pieces come together, businesses can keep funds productive – even holding them in yield-bearing form right up to the moment of payment.
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