In cross-border remittance companies, trade-oriented SMEs, and even the finance departments of internet platforms, an increasingly common challenge is: we agree to use stablecoins for payments, but how do we turn them into daily cash flow tools that are 'auditable, risk-controlled, and transferable'? The answer is not to issue another new coin, but to build the infrastructure into a passable highway—incorporating currency, custody, compliance, financing, and scenarios. Stablecoins solve 'value stability,' while PayFi solves 'practical usability.'
What Stablecoins Solve and What They Leave Behind Bitcoin and Ethereum have shown us permissionless value transfer, but price volatility has pushed them toward 'digital gold' and on-chain computing economies. What truly makes payments and settlements replicable is stablecoins anchored to stable assets: fiat-collateralized (such as USDT, USDC, PYUSD, RLUSD) are backed by auditing and compliance; crypto-collateralized (such as DAI, USDe) hedge against volatility with over-collateralization and mechanism design; commodity-backed (such as PAXG) digitize physical assets like gold; while the lessons from purely algorithmic systems (like UST) remind us that transparency and risk isolation are the bottom line. Stablecoins bring 'value stability' on-chain, but to truly enter wage payments, cross-border clearing and settlement, and supply chain financing, a complete set of supporting layers is needed.
Five-layer Stack to Turn Stablecoins into 'Programmable Cash' A healthy PayFi stack typically consists of five layers, each with its own responsibilities and interlocking functions.
Layer 1: Currency and Issuance Layer This is the foundation of everything, responsible for the issuance, cross-chain circulation, and programmability of stablecoins. Bridge focuses on the safe and efficient transfer of cross-chain tokens, allowing stablecoins to navigate seamlessly in multi-chain environments; Paxos is known for compliance and transparency, providing regulated tokenized dollar solutions; Portal builds programmable stablecoin infrastructure for enterprises, supporting global payroll, remittances, and trade; Perena enhances the resilience of stablecoins in volatile markets through dynamic collateral algorithms. Together, they form the 'currency layer,' allowing enterprises and individuals to confidently connect traditional and decentralized finance with on-chain assets.
Layer 2: Custody Layer Asset security is the first threshold for enterprises to go on-chain. Institutions like Fireblocks and Ledger provide solutions such as MPC and cold storage to meet auditing and compliance needs; non-custodial wallets like Phantom and Squads balance ease of use with self-management; Cobo offers a combination of custodial and non-custodial solutions, covering diverse needs from individuals to institutions. A trustworthy custody layer avoids 'leaving risk control to luck.'
Layer 3: Compliance Layer To interface with banks and government systems, on-chain business must be 'compliant out of the box.' Chainalysis provides on-chain investigation and risk management tools to help identify suspicious transactions and anti-money laundering; TRM Labs integrates transaction monitoring, address screening, and training into the same platform, deepening on-chain assessments with behavioral intelligence; Polyflow embeds compliance directly into on-chain custody processes, ensuring alignment of asset management with regulatory requirements. This layer allows scalability and security to be parallel goals.
Layer 4: Financing Layer This is the 'engine' of PayFi, upgrading stablecoins from 'payment medium' to 'financing medium.' Huma Finance provides standardized payment financing capabilities at this layer: tokenizing future receivable payment orders and conducting risk control modeling, releasing liquidity like USDC as needed for cross-border clearing and working capital turnover; integrating with high-performance networks like Solana and Stellar, combined with the merger with Arf to bring 'instant liquidity' to global channels; as early as 2023, Huma partnered with Circle to use the stability of USDC as the underlying clearing currency, and piloted income predictive credit for local entrepreneurs with Jia. In support, Credora brings institutional-level credit evaluations on-chain, Pyth Network provides real-time prices for stocks, forex, commodities, etc., for credit reference, Chainlink's Proof of Reserve enhances collateral transparency, and S&P Global brings traditional credit ratings and RWA analysis into the tokenization process. Only after the financing layer is connected can stablecoins truly possess the ability to 'exchange future income for today's cash.'
Layer 5: Application Layer This is where users can see and touch. Payment cards and enterprise expense management connect cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies through Rain, Kulipa, ReDotPay, Visa, Reap, DCS, etc.; in the DePIN direction, Arkreen, DePHY, DeCharge, Roam bring energy, IoT, EV, and communication infrastructure on-chain and incentivize participation; trade finance is driven by BSOS, GeoSwift, Jia, Trad.Fi, Zoth, Isle Finance, On.Fund to digitalize processes and tokenize financing; payment infrastructure providers like Request Network, Sphere, Coinflow Labs, Stripe, Easy Labs, Helio, Sanctum, Pye, Mansa, together with regional fintech Onafriq, refine the seamless experience of 'fiat-crypto'; FX and cross-border transactions by SureFX, Shifts Forex Markets, Arf, Felix, MuralPay, Xoom, Bitso, Opera Mini, Interlace shorten settlements and reduce costs; while OTC and deposit/withdrawal services from Yellow Card, Banxa, HashKey, Coins.ph, RD Technologies, fonbnk supplement liquidity and compliance access. The richness of the application layer determines that stablecoins are not 'collectibles' but a 'cash toolbox.'
Why I Focus on Huma Finance As a third-party observer and evaluator, we pay more attention to 'structural dividends.' In the five-layer stack, the financing layer has the most direct impact on improving corporate cash flow efficiency: it turns stablecoins into measurable, interest-bearing, and circulating working capital. Huma's approach has three noteworthy points: First, standardizing 'payment orders.' By tokenizing accounts receivable, remittance clearing instructions, etc., and combining compliant KYC, AML, and risk limits, it forms an additive financing capability; Second, using high-performance links to achieve immediacy. Connecting networks like Solana and Stellar, minimizing 'prepaid funds' and 'in-transit time' in cross-border scenarios; Third, completing the ecological puzzle. The merger with Arf brings channel and clearing advantages, while the early collaboration with Circle and Jia demonstrates the replicability of USDC clearing and micro-financing for SMEs, further enhanced by partners like Credora, Pyth, Chainlink, and S&P Global, forming a closed loop of 'credit-granting-pricing-guaranteeing-clearing.' More importantly, organizational capacity matches strategic ambition. In February 2025, Patrick F. Campos joined Huma as Chief Business Officer; he has deep experience in institutional-level on-chain finance and compliance technology from his time at Securrency, familiar with the regulatory logic of tokenization and global capital markets; his experience in complex transactions at firms like King & Spalding, Baker Botts, Chadbourne & Parke LLP means he can refine regulation and product design to be 'implementable'; he has previously served as an advisor to Huma and Arf, understanding the practical details of liquidity and working capital, and combined with his background as a Marine Corps officer and team manager, he can accelerate global collaboration, compliance communication, and business development. These signals are what enterprise-level clients most want to see as 'executive commitments.'
Implementation Recommendations for Different Types of Participants If you are a cross-border remittance and payment company: Use USDC as the settlement currency, tokenize clearing instructions through Huma's PayFi network and Arf channel, reduce pre-financing occupation, and use Chainalysis/TRM for compliance monitoring; If you are a trade and supply chain finance participant: Put invoices and accounts receivable on-chain, conduct credit assessments with Credora, use Pyth/Chainlink for price and reserve verification, and utilize Huma for turnover; If you are a regional payment infrastructure and wallet: Choose Fireblocks, Ledger, Cobo for layered custody, integrate the self-management options of Phantom and Squads at the front end to ensure availability for both C-end and B-end; If you are a corporate CFO: Pilot 'accounts receivable monetization' and 'overseas salary disbursement' using stablecoins as a medium for cross-border salary and supplier settlements, validating the comprehensive benefits of shortened payment terms, reduced funding costs, and auditing compliance.
Ecosystem Map and Industry Gathering The PayFi ecosystem map goes beyond this; it is a dynamic industrial map. With clearer regulations, increased transparency, and the emergence of new sound models, stablecoins are becoming 'instant, programmable money.' We also welcome more companies building PayFi to supplement cases and data to improve this map; at the same time, the first annual PayFi summit will be held during Consensus Hong Kong in 2025, inviting collaboration to transform the next generation of payment and financing into replicable industry consensus. If your company has innovative practices in the PayFi field and wishes to be included in the ecosystem map, you can also participate in co-construction by submitting information through a questionnaire.
Conclusion Stablecoins stabilize value, while PayFi enables value flow. By completing the five-layer stack, enterprises can use blockchain as a reliable cash infrastructure. From a third-party perspective, we believe Huma Finance has successfully navigated the closed loop from asset generation, risk control credit, compliance clearing to global liquidity in the 'financing layer,' the most easily overlooked yet crucial link. For cross-border enterprises and fintech looking to double fund efficiency, this is a starting point worth trying as soon as possible.
