Merchants have long sought to break free from the dominance of Visa and Mastercard, and stablecoins have emerged as a real alternative.
In an effort to reduce the burden of payment processing costs, major American retailers and travel agencies, including Amazon, Walmart, and Expedia, are considering launching their own stablecoins . The news was reported today, Friday, June 13, by the Wall Street Journal , citing sources familiar with the initiative.
The advantages for traders
This potential change could help merchants save billions of dollars in card payment fees, including interchange fees.
Typically, networks like Visa and Mastercard charge merchants fees ranging from 1% to 3% on each credit card transaction. For large retailers processing billions of transactions, these fees add up to huge annual costs.
Another key advantage is that stablecoin transactions can be settled almost instantly , compared to the typical 1-3 business days required for traditional card payments.
This enables merchants to access funds faster, improve cash flow, and more effectively manage global supply chains, especially when making payments to international suppliers.
According to a source close to the company, Amazon ’s exploration is still in the early stages, with discussions focused on developing an internal stablecoin designed for online purchases. The companies are also considering using external stablecoins, possibly through a merchant consortium led by a single stablecoin issuer.
Banks will compete with current stablecoin issuers
According to a report in May by The Journal , major U.S. banks, including JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo, are considering a joint stablecoin initiative to compete with digital asset platforms that are rapidly gaining market share.
As with the banks’ efforts, the future of the retailers’ stablecoin plans hinges on the passage of the Genius Act , which would create a regulatory framework specifically for stablecoins.
The bill has already cleared a key procedural hurdle, but it still needs to be approved by the Senate and the House. The U.S. Senate will hold a final vote on the GENIUS Act on June 17 to establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins .
Merchant trade associations, led by the Merchants Payments Coalition , supported passage of the Genius Act, arguing that a regulatory framework for stablecoins would create competition for Visa and Mastercard while reducing fees.
Walmart has separately lobbied for an amendment to the GENIUS Act that would introduce more competition into the credit card industry.
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