In the race for gold in stablecoins, distribution is the new pickaxe @MITTechReviewBr — The rapid popularization of stablecoins has created a kind of land rush that attracts all kinds of competitors. The darlings of fintech want programmable money to integrate into existing cross-border payment flows and purchase finalization; global banks see a network alternative that could threaten or complement their franchises; card networks cannot afford to cede payments to another party. Add to this a flood of native cryptocurrency companies, and you have a contest where distribution — both on the institutional side and retail — and ideology are not the only metrics that matter.

However, all these players are fundamentally chasing the same goal: 'digital dollars that move anywhere, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at almost zero cost.' When everyone offers the same shiny currency, where, exactly, does the advantage lie?