90% of institutions ‘taking action’ on stablecoins: Fireblocks survey

Update May 16, 11:24 am UTC: This article has been updated to add comments from Ran Goldi, senior vice president of payments and network at Fireblocks.

A report from enterprise-grade digital assets platform Fireblocks shows that 90% of institutional players are using or exploring the use of stablecoins in their operations.

The report, published May 15, surveyed 295 executives across traditional banks, financial institutions, fintech companies and payment gateways. Almost half of the respondents (49%) said they already use stablecoins in payments, while 23% are conducting pilot tests and another 18% are in the planning stage.

Only 10% of institutions surveyed said they were undecided about stablecoin adoption.

“The stablecoin race has become a matter of avoiding obsolescence as customer demand accelerates and use cases mature,” Fireblocks wrote.

As traditional cross-border systems are hampered by higher costs, delays and other inefficiencies, stablecoins have emerged as a strategic solution in emerging markets’ business-to-business (B2B) settings. 

The report found that financial institutions, particularly traditional banks, cited cross-border payments as a top priority for using stablecoins. Banks use stablecoins for a competitive advantage, to reduce friction and meet customer expectations. 

The report found that 58% of traditional banks use stablecoins for cross-border payments, while 28% use the assets to accept payments. Twelve percent of banks use stablecoins to optimize their liquidity, while 9% use them in merchant settlements. Another 9% use them in B2B invoicing. 

Fireblocks said banks see stablecoins as a “path to modernization.” It said that since the assets are fiat-pegged, it’s easier to integrate them into existing treasury workflows. In addition, stablecoins offer a lever to reclaim market share from financial technology companies and reduce capital lock-up.

Related: Stablecoin bill passes in Northern Marianas as House overrides veto

The survey results showed that banks use stablecoins to regain cross-border volume while maintaining existing infrastructure. Financial technology firms and payment gateways use digital assets to gain margin and revenue. 

Among the benefits cited by survey respondents, faster settlement was most prevalent, mentioned by 48% of participants.

Other benefits included greater transparency, better liquidity management, integrated payment flows, enhanced security and lower transaction costs.

Stablecoin adoption has evolved beyond a focus on cost savings and is now viewed as a strategic growth driver, according to Ran Goldi, senior vice president of payments and network at Fireblocks.

“Our research shows that 90% of firms are moving forward with stablecoin implementations because they see it as a key lever for growth,” Goldi told Cointelegraph. 

The executive noted that the top motivators include expanding into new markets, responding to direct customer demand, and unlocking new revenue opportunities. “Stablecoins have become an enabler of business innovation, not just an efficiency play,” he added.

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