The Wall Street Journal reported that major American companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Expedia are considering launching their own stablecoins to reduce the high costs associated with credit card payments.
These companies are seeking to avoid exchange fees that typically range from 1% to 3% per transaction, costs that accumulate annually to billions of dollars for large retailers.
Stablecoins enable near-instant payment settlements, compared to the period that can extend up to three business days in traditional payments, giving companies greater ability to manage their cash flows and supply chains, especially at the international level.
Although projects like Amazon's currency are still in their early stages, discussions are ongoing about the possibility of using them for online purchases.
Some companies are exploring the option of using an external stablecoin through a coalition led by a single currency issuer.
In this context, major American banks like JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo are working on a joint initiative to launch a stablecoin to compete with rapidly growing digital platforms.
The future of these plans remains contingent upon the approval of the 'Genius' law, which aims to regulate the stablecoin market.
The proposed legislation has passed a major procedural hurdle and is set to be voted on in the Senate on June 17.
Trade groups, such as the Merchant Payments Alliance, believe that the law will open the door to fair competition and reduce reliance on traditional payment networks like Visa and Mastercard.
For its part, Walmart has called for additional amendments to the law to enhance competition in the credit card sector.
