The volume of transactions with stablecoins reached $35 trillion in 2025. However, only about $390 billion is related to actual payments, which accounts for ~0.02% of the global figure. This is stated in the report by McKinsey and Artemis Analytics.
The overwhelming majority of activity in 'stablecoins' is related to activities that are not payment-related. Researchers cited the following as main examples:
movement of funds between wallets by exchanges and depositories;
automated interaction of smart contracts;
liquidity management, arbitrage, and flows related to crypto trading;
protocol-level mechanisms that break the operation into multiple steps, increasing the number of transactions.
High expectations
The stablecoin market exceeded $300 billion compared to $30 billion in 2020. Public forecasts reflect expectations of further growth.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessen stated that by 2030, the supply of fiat-pegged tokens could reach $3 trillion. Leading financial institutions provide similar estimates.
'These expectations have heightened interest on their part, many have begun to explore the application of stablecoins in various use cases for payments and settlements,' the report states.
Experts identified three main areas, however, the volume of stablecoin transactions in them turned out to be extremely insignificant:
global payroll payments and money transfers — over the year, 'stable coins' accounted for about $90 billion, which is less than 1% of the total figure of $1.2 trillion;
business payments (B2B) — approximately $226 billion, corresponding to a share of 0.01% of a total volume of approximately $1600 trillion;
capital markets — $8 billion or the same 0.01% of global $200 trillion.
Real prospects
Although the share of stablecoins in the total volume of actual payments remains insignificant, it reflects real and growing usage in specific scenarios.
In the area of money transfers and payroll, 'stable coins' offer an attractive alternative to existing channels due to virtually instant transactions with minimal costs.
Stablecoins can solve the problems of inefficiency in cross-border settlements in international trade. B2B segment users are already using tokens to optimize payments in supply chains and improve liquidity management. This is especially true for small and medium-sized enterprises, experts emphasized.
In capital markets, 'stable coins' reduce counterparty risk and shorten the settlement cycle. Some asset managers use stablecoins for payouts or reinvesting dividends, allowing them to avoid the services of a bank.
Researchers identified three main observations:
'stable coins' are gaining popularity where clear advantages over existing systems are offered. For example, expenses on token-linked cards grew by 673% year on year;
the growth in payment volume in stablecoins is driven by the B2B segment — plus 733% in 2025 and a share of about 60% of the total $390 billion;
the main activity is concentrated in Asia, dominated by Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan. The volume of stablecoin payments sent in the region amounted to $245 billion. North America accounted for $95 billion, and Europe — $50 billion.
Experts believe that these patterns indicate that the adoption of 'stable coins' is occurring in a limited number of scenarios. Further expansion of usage will depend on the success of implemented use cases and the possibility of their replication elsewhere.
'Stablecoins have the potential for significant transformation of the payment system. However, realizing these opportunities depends on ongoing efforts in technology, regulation, and market adoption,' experts concluded.
Recall that the International Monetary Fund warned of global financial risks associated with 'stable coins', especially those pegged to the dollar.