Stablecoins were pitched as a way around the card networks. Now the card networks are building their own.
Three people familiar with the plans say Stripe, Visa, and Mastercard are about to roll out a joint stablecoin platform, with Coinbase reportedly exploring whether to join them.
Stablecoins are digital tokens pegged to the dollar - useful for moving money quickly without routing through a bank. The big card networks have spent the past year buying their way into the space.
Stripe kicked things off in late 2024 with a $1.1 billion deal for Bridge, a company that builds stablecoin infrastructure.
Mastercard followed earlier this year by acquiring BVNK, while Visa pushed its own stablecoin pilot onto nine blockchains in April.
Building a joint platform is the next step. Instead of competing for the same slice of the same market, the three are pooling resources behind one set of pipes.
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The global stablecoin market is now worth roughly $325 billion, with Tether's USDT running the show at $115 billion.
Circle's USDC sits in second at $76 billion - and Coinbase happens to be Circle's biggest distribution partner.
Stablecoin transaction volume has climbed sharply, with on-chain settlement now rivaling traditional payment networks on a monthly basis. That kind of growth is hard for Visa, Stripe, and Mastercard to keep ignoring.
That's real money moving outside traditional payment rails, and for companies that earn fees on every swipe, wire, and cross-border transfer, the lost volume adds up fast.
If stablecoins are going to eat into card revenue, the networks would rather own a piece of the new pipes than watch from the sidelines.
Coinbase already has a stablecoin deal in place with Circle, and that deal is up for renewal in August.
Under the current terms, Coinbase keeps 100% of the interest income from USDC held on its platform and splits the rest 50/50 with Circle - a structure that has helped fuel the exchange's revenue beyond trading fees.
Coinbase pulled in roughly $1.35 billion in stablecoin revenue last year, making the Circle deal one of its largest income streams outside trading fees.
Publicly weighing participation in a competing platform two months before that renewal gives Coinbase added leverage heading into the conversation.
The August renewal between Coinbase and Circle is the next milestone.
Also worth watching: whether the new platform launches with its own stablecoin or routes through existing ones, and how regulators respond to three of the biggest names in payments controlling a major piece of how dollars move online.
When Visa, Stripe, and Mastercard agree on anything, the rest of the market tends to follow.
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