What we've learned partnering with fintechs

Over the past year, I've had countless conversations with payment leaders across the industry – from acquirers to issuers, neobanks to payment networks. Many have already created innovation teams to explore stablecoin payments, while others have invested in blockchain wallet solutions.

At BVNK, we've built a payments business processing $12 billion in annual stablecoin volumes. This experience has given us unique insights into how stablecoins are being used today, and what challenges await those implementing them.

Analysing stablecoin use cases

1. B2B settlement: A useful starting point

Why it works: B2B settlement represents about half of our payment volumes at BVNK. Our fintech customers use stablecoins to:

• Settle cross-border with merchants (especially early adopters of crypto themselves).
• Collect payments from local PSPs in emerging markets.
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The appeal is simple: global reach and near-instant settlement make stablecoins an excellent alternative to correspondent banking, especially in emerging markets. Faster settlement means happier customers and reduced pre-funding requirements.

Getting started is also straightforward – no complex API integrations required. Everything can be managed through your provider's portal.

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2. Consumer payments: Getting the UX Right

B2C stablecoin payouts have become our fastest-growing segment, now making up a third of our payment volumes. Even companies outside the crypto space are requesting stablecoin payouts:

• Deel enables contractors worldwide to receive wages in stablecoins, protecting purchasing power‍
• Worldpay helps merchants pay sellers, creators, and hosts globally, especially where currency volatility exists
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For consumer-facing applications, the user experience of stablecoin payments is critical:

• Reduce friction by enabling wallet connections and saving preferences
• Offer multiple stablecoin options (geographic preferences matter!)
• Support multiple blockchains, but incentivize those that match your use case
• Increase your reach: Consider in-platform wallet creation at the point of payout for users who don’t yet have a blockchain wallet.
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3. Domestic settlement: The unexpected use case

While cross-border use cases have the early momentum, we're seeing growing interest in using stablecoins for domestic money movement, particularly where weekend settlements are needed (eg PSPs serving retail or big sporting events)

Traditional payment rails often come with limitations: for example they don’t operate over weekends or you have to pay extra for same day/instant payment options. Blockchains operate 24/7/365. This appeals to banks wanting to avoid settlement risk and acquirers/fintechs looking to reduce costly prefunding loans over weekends. 

Watch for industry leaders testing this use case in 2025.

Practical considerations for implementing stablecoins

You don't need to handle crypto directly

Many of our partners prefer not to touch stablecoins themselves due to licensing concerns. If that's you, partner with a provider that can:

• Hold your fiat balances in safeguarded accounts
• Auto-convert between fiat and stablecoins as needed
• Handle the necessary regulatory requirements
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Most stablecoin payment flows today involve some fiat element, so find a partner comfortable with a breadth of offering in both worlds. 

It’s also helpful to use a stablecoin partner that is licensed globally, or at least for the markets you want to use stablecoins, so you don’t need to work with multiple different providers to service your customers.

Look under the surface when it comes to tech stack 

Stablecoins are changing what’s possible with payments, and many providers are now embracing them. But the technology stack is critical. 

When startups build stablecoin payments infrastructure ‘in their basement’ without investing in the technology, it usually doesn't scale fast enough, and becomes very difficult to use and maintain.

Equally if you rely too much on third parties (e.g. third party blockchain wallet solutions) to get to market faster, you might find they’re less able to be responsive to technical issues and bugs.  At BVNK, we’ve invested 5 years in building our own stablecoin payment infrastructure designed to move money efficiently at scale. 

With our flexible integration options, our partners can get up and running quickly with stablecoin payments via our merchant portal, while they complete a full API integration.

Build fee flexibility into your model

Different use cases require different fee structures:

• For contractor payouts, you might pass blockchain and conversion fees to users
• For salary payments, employers or fintechs typically cover these costs

Choose a partner offering flexibility in how you structure transaction fees. The good news? The base cost for stablecoin transfers is usually cheaper than traditional banking alternatives.

Financial crime prevention: separating myth from reality

Despite persistent myths, blockchain's transparency can actually enhance AML practices compared to traditional finance - with the right tools and partners.

When evaluating stablecoin payment partners, ensure they have:

• A robust financial crime control framework
• Enhanced due diligence processes for customers
• Effective transaction monitoring and suspicious activity reporting
• Travel Rule compliance for secure information sharing.

Getting ready for stablecoins

Stablecoins represent the most exciting infrastructure upgrade for payments in decades. While integration can be complex, you don't need to start from scratch.

At BVNK, we help fintechs and PSPs integrate stablecoins into their existing offerings. Learn more about how we support our fintech partners.

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