An analysis of the industry landscape and future transformation reveals that the global financial system is undergoing an infrastructure reconstruction that far exceeds expectations, and stablecoins are the core catalyst for this transformation. The latest assessment from a16z points out that stablecoins have completely shed their status as niche trading tools and evolved into the underlying layer of a new generation of global financial products, driving the formation of a new global financial technology stack. The core of this transformation is not the iteration of a single enterprise, but the structural reconstruction - how to implement new financial infrastructure, consolidate mature sectors, and fill in shortcomings, jointly outlining the complete landscape of the stablecoin industry.

The core logic of the transformation lies in the fact that stablecoins have given rise to a new form of Bank-as-a-Service (BaaS) model. Unlike the previous wave of BaaS, where fintech companies leased banking licenses and integrated into traditional, outdated core systems, the essence of this round of transformation is for enterprises to build businesses based on on-chain infrastructure: by independently hosting wallets to reduce the friction of capital circulation and minimize dependence on intermediaries, while integrating basic financial capabilities such as accounts, payments, foreign exchange, and credit to create an integrated end-to-end financial product. This model completely breaks down the industry barriers of a decade ago, where a full suite of financial services could only be achieved by holding multiple regional licenses and cooperating with local banks. Now, relying on the latest technology stack, any team can quickly implement it. Cases such as Stripe's acquisition of Bridge and Privy, and MasterCard's acquisition of BVNK, also confirm that traditional financial giants are actively positioning themselves to seize the strategic high ground before the underlying infrastructure is finalized. Various signals indicate that the transformation of on-chain finance is irreversible, and embracing it proactively has become the only choice for enterprises.

As the underlying carrier of stable coins, blockchain has differentiated into three types of differentiated public chain systems, breaking the inherent perception that "all public chains compete for the same application scenario". Each type is designed based on specific needs, making different performance trade-offs, and collectively supporting the application ecosystem of stable coins. Firstly, general-purpose public chains, represented by Solana, Ethereum, and their mainstream second-layer networks, remain the core battleground of the crypto capital market, covering transactions, lending, DeFi, and other businesses. They are large in scale and have long-term vitality, but they do not represent the entire industry. Secondly, payment-specific blockchains are core carriers tailored for financial services, such as Tempo under Stripe and Arc under Circle. They focus on core pain points that general-purpose public chains have not optimized - native stable coin fees, privacy protection, and predictable transaction costs. They have become the core choice for fintech companies that handle millions of payments daily, and are widely believed to become the core settlement layer of the next generation of financial infrastructure. Thirdly, institution-specific networks, represented by Canton, are consortium chains for compliant institutions. They balance programmability and data privacy while meeting regulatory risk control requirements. With the accelerated entry of banks and asset management institutions, their carrying value is gradually being released.

In the entire industry chain of stablecoins, the competitive landscape and development trends of each link exhibit distinct differences. Among them, the loosening of barriers in the banking industry, the license competition among stablecoin issuers, and the improvement of shortcomings in liquidity service providers have become key factors influencing the industry's direction. Over the past decade, the banking system has been the biggest bottleneck for crypto-native financial services. The high threshold for cooperative bank access and unstable partnerships have been major survival risks for crypto enterprises. However, this predicament has been significantly improved - a group of compliant banks embracing the crypto ecosystem have taken the initiative to build bridges, connecting on-chain infrastructure with the traditional fiat currency system. The once-troubling issues of depositing and withdrawing funds have been gradually resolved, and the smooth passage of fiat currency channels is the core lifeblood for the operation of stablecoin-native fintech enterprises.

The competitive landscape in the stablecoin issuance arena has undergone a fundamental shift, with regulatory compliance emerging as the core battleground. Since the implementation of the US's "GENIUS Act", major issuers have been vying for national trust licenses from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). In the short term, federal endorsement can rapidly enhance compliance credibility and gain recognition from regulators and institutional partners. In the long term, if future regulations allow nationally licensed banks to directly access the Federal Reserve's clearing network, issuers who secure compliance licenses ahead of time will deeply integrate into the traditional financial core system and become key players in the global financial digital transformation. The core of this competition lies not in brand marketing, but in seizing a hierarchical position in the payment system and building the underlying foundation that supports the long-term development of credit and capital markets.

Liquidity service providers are facing the challenge of the "last mile". Stablecoins have achieved breakthroughs in the middle link of cross-border payments, significantly improving settlement efficiency and reducing the friction of capital circulation, without relying heavily on correspondent bank accounts. However, the insufficient liquidity for exchanging stablecoins with local fiat currencies remains a core shortcoming that constrains the industry's development, especially in emerging markets. This directly leads to issues such as price difference losses, delayed payments, and unstable quotes, affecting the large-scale implementation of stablecoins in B2B business scenarios. Currently, three major paths are collaborating to address this shortcoming: foreign exchange service providers (such as OpenFX and XFX) that are compatible with stablecoins provide technical docking capabilities, deeply rooted local regional exchanges (such as Bitso in Latin America, Yellowcard in Africa, and Coins.ph in Southeast Asia) strengthen local liquidity, and traditional banks leverage their balance sheets and global correspondent bank networks to provide a backstop. All three are indispensable and work together to build a complete liquidity closed loop.

As a low-profile yet indispensable core infrastructure, the bank docking layer plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between on-chain infrastructure and traditional banking systems. Previously, stablecoin infrastructure was mostly built by fintech companies, non-bank payment institutions, and crypto-native entities, independent of the traditional banking system. While this approach achieved efficient iteration and an open ecosystem, it also presented structural risks—namely, inherent incompatibility with the outdated core systems of traditional banks. Bank docking services, by establishing dedicated infrastructure, assist banks in quickly launching stablecoin-related services while retaining their existing core systems, eliminating the need for costly full-system upgrades. Some leading enterprises have already extended their business boundaries to on-chain lending, anticipating the future expansion needs of the stablecoin ecosystem for banks.

Two major trends in the application layer are reshaping the terminal ecosystem of stablecoins and driving the emergence of new financial infrastructure components. The first trend is the accelerated integration of digital banking and cryptocurrency wallets: trading platforms are successively introducing features such as virtual accounts, payment cards, and equity rewards. Online digital banking platforms are integrating cryptocurrency assets with traditional financial products, blurring the boundaries between the two types of products. Ultimately, they will evolve into an integrated financial terminal, serving both cryptocurrency users and the general public through a unified interface. The ultimate winner will be a comprehensive platform that can integrate traffic, establish user trust, and meet market demands. The second trend is the large-scale adoption of stablecoins in corporate banking scenarios: In regions such as most of Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia, where the infrastructure of dollar banking is weak, services are unstable, and costs are high, stablecoins have enabled businesses to achieve dollar business operations that were previously unattainable, covering scenarios such as supplier payments, global collections, and corporate fund management. It is worth noting that the core of this trend is not the cryptocurrency assets themselves, but rather the inclusive accessibility of dollar funds, driven by the real business needs of local enterprises.

What has a more long-term impact is that the transformation at the application layer has extended to the entire financial ecosystem beyond account services. The US dollar channel is merely an opportunity to enter the market. For small and micro-entrepreneurs in Lagos, freelancers in Buenos Aires, and ordinary savers in Jakarta, having a stable on-chain balance denominated in US dollars is equivalent to obtaining an admission ticket to a brand-new financial system, enabling access to a full suite of financial services that were previously inaccessible, such as credit, investment, wealth management, and insurance. In emerging markets where traditional finance has long been absent, digital banks and super apps that are the first to seize user account relationships will have an absolute advantage in cross-category cross-selling - payment is merely an entry point for account opening, while credit and investment businesses are the core of business value accumulation.

If payment represents the first stage of stablecoin transformation, then credit may become the second stage, with even more profound influence. Market perception of stablecoin growth is often limited to narrow banking services such as dollar tokenization, wallet custody, instant settlement, and on-demand redemption, but it overlooks the deep changes that will arise after its large-scale popularization: when trillions of dollars worth of stablecoin funds form a massive stock, the market will inevitably generate a huge demand for capital investment. Enterprises holding stablecoin funds will need to find value-added channels for idle funds, on-chain protocols will require liquidity supply, and end users will also have borrowing needs, thus giving rise to a brand-new on-chain credit market. This market has moved away from the self-contained speculative lending model of early DeFi and returned to the roots of banking, forming a productive credit system that relies on real assets and accounts receivable for lending, providing working capital support to enterprises in regions where traditional financial services are lacking.

This evolution logic bears a strong resemblance to the development of the non-standard private credit industry over the past decade: banks had to scale back certain credit operations under regulatory pressure, and private credit funds took advantage of this opportunity to fill the gap, evolving from being marginal alternative assets to becoming a core business segment with a scale of trillions of dollars. The on-chain credit market shares a similar origin, both breaking away from the traditional banking system and relying on a novel architecture to gather capital, serving borrower groups overlooked by traditional finance. Its core advantage lies in the natural openness, programmability, and globalization attributes of on-chain finance, which are unmatched by the private credit system. Currently, traditional credit institutions have begun to pay close attention to this sector. Those institutions that can anticipate trends and complete their layouts through in-house research or mergers and acquisitions will dominate the future landscape of the on-chain capital market.

The revolution brought by stablecoins has long transcended the realm of fintech, exhibiting profound bidirectional geopolitical effects. For individuals and businesses, integrating into the new global financial system signifies tangible economic empowerment: mitigating the risk of local currency depreciation, facilitating global payment channels, and conducting operations using the most liquid global currency, the US dollar. Nowadays, farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, manufacturers in Southeast Asia, and small importers in Latin America can independently hold, trade, and save US dollars without the need to open a US bank account, rely on the cross-border correspondent banking system, or be subject to the access restrictions imposed by traditional financial oligarchs. This marks an unprecedented transformation, where the US dollar has transitioned from a privileged resource to an inclusive tool.

For the United States, stablecoins further reinforce the global dominance of the US dollar. Since the last century, the hegemony of the US dollar has been maintained through the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, a global network of correspondent banks, and bilateral agreements, allowing the United States to control global financial rules. Nowadays, stablecoins have opened up a more direct path - every wallet holding a US dollar stablecoin is a new node in the US dollar financial network, capable of completing value settlement between any two locations globally at near-zero cost and in seconds. The higher the penetration of stablecoins, the stronger the network effect, and the US dollar can further penetrate economies with limited coverage. Against the backdrop of regulations such as the US GENIUS Act, the US government is not simply regulating new financial products, but making an active strategic bet. It relies on stablecoin infrastructure to consolidate the long-term dominance of the US dollar. This is of great strategic significance at a time when the Bretton Woods system has collapsed and the hegemony of the US dollar faces challenges.

a16z emphasizes that the construction of a new global financial technology stack is still ongoing, and its strategic value goes far beyond payment upgrades. It represents a comprehensive reconstruction of the underlying financial infrastructure. This new underlying transmission network is inherently open, programmable, and interconnected, capable of covering regions, populations, and business scenarios that traditional finance has never reached. Its value lies not only in low-cost global payments but also in providing inclusive dollar services to regions where local banks are ineffective, creating value-added returns for idle funds, providing credit support to groups underserved by traditional finance, and opening the door to investment for billions of people who have not participated in the capital market. Nowadays, enterprises that deeply engage in full-chain financial infrastructure and make layered layouts will define the global financial landscape of the next era and lead the future direction of the global dollar economy.