Stablecoin-powered payments are experiencing explosive growth, with infrastructure providers StraitsX and Stripe reporting massive increases in transaction volumes and card issuance across Southeast Asia and globally. Data from Singapore-based StraitsX reveals that between Q4 2024 and Q4 2025, transaction volume tied to its card program surged 40 times, while the number of cards issued skyrocketed 83-fold. StraitsX operates as a backend provider, enabling partners to issue stablecoin-linked cards.
Globally, on-chain crypto card spending surged 420% in 2025, from $23 million to $120 million, with total volumes exceeding $1.5 billion by late 2025. This growth is part of a broader trend where stablecoins are becoming embedded into everyday transactions, supported by expanding partnerships between infrastructure providers, card issuers, and regional payment networks.
In a major parallel development, payments giant Stripe has made a strategic, enterprise-focused re-entry into the crypto space, centered on stablecoins as programmable settlement instruments. The company, valued at approximately $159 billion, declared in its 2026 annual letter that "it may be a crypto winter, but it is a stablecoin summer." Stripe's strategy is built on several key pillars:
Acquisitions and Infrastructure: Stripe acquired stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge for $1.1 billion, completed in early 2025. This formed the foundation for launching Stablecoin Financial Accounts in 101 countries, allowing businesses to hold, send, and receive funds in stablecoins like USDC and Bridge's USDB. Stripe also acquired the team behind the Valora wallet and the wallet application Privy.
The Tempo Blockchain: Developed with Paradigm, Tempo is a purpose-built blockchain designed for enterprise payments, offering sub-second finality and dedicated payment lanes. Early testnet participants include Visa, Nubank, Shopify, and Klarna, which launched its KlarnaUSD stablecoin on Tempo. The public mainnet is expected in 2026.
Product Launches: Stripe launched stablecoin payments for subscriptions in October 2025, solving the recurring payment problem via smart contracts. It also rolled out merchant acceptance of stablecoins for instant global transfers, partnering with Crypto.com. Furthermore, Bridge partnered with Visa to create a global card-issuing product linked to stablecoin wallets.
AI and Open Issuance: Stripe collaborated with OpenAI on the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to enable AI agents to make autonomous purchases using stablecoin rails. It also introduced "Open Issuance," a platform allowing any business to launch its own stablecoin with reserves managed by BlackRock, Fidelity, and Superstate.
Stripe's stablecoin transaction volumes increased more than fourfold in 2025, driven by real business use. The company processed $1.9 trillion in total payment volume that year, positioning stablecoins as the infrastructure layer for its next phase of growth.
