Financial technology leader Stripe is creating a U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoin tailored for businesses outside the U.S., U.K., and European markets. CEO Patrick Collison announced the project in a social media post, calling for early adopters to test the upcoming product.

This move follows Stripe’s recent acquisition of Bridge, a stablecoin payment network founded in 2022 by former Coinbase executives Zach Abrams and Sean Yu. Designed to compete with conventional banking rails and SWIFT transfers, Bridge strengthens Stripe’s foothold in digital asset transactions.

Stripe’s engagement with cryptocurrency spans a decade, beginning in 2014 when it pioneered Bitcoin (BTC) payments only to discontinue support later due to scalability issues. The company rekindled its blockchain efforts in 2021, expanding its crypto division and introducing stablecoin settlements in October 2024, which gained immediate traction across 70 countries.

A collaboration with Coinbase earlier that year further streamlined fiat-to-crypto conversions. Collison noted that this stablecoin initiative fulfills a vision the company has pursued for nearly 10 years.

Stablecoins digital tokens pegged to stable assets like fiat currencies are increasingly favored for cross-border transactions amid growing regulatory scrutiny. U.S. policymakers, including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, have emphasized the need for structured oversight.

Competitors like PayPal have also entered the arena, launching proprietary stablecoins with yield-bearing features. The sector’s expansion is evident, with the total stablecoin market cap reaching $237.5 billion as of late April, per DefiLlama data underscoring the rising demand for efficient, dollar-linked digital payment solutions worldwide.

Key #cryptocurrency to track with this update: $USDC