# Payments Related Articles

HTX News Center provides the latest articles and in-depth analysis on "Payments", covering market trends, project updates, tech developments, and regulatory policies in the crypto industry.

Decoding Stripe's 2025 Annual Letter: Even in the Crypto Winter, It's Still the Summer of Stablecoins

Stripe's 2025 annual letter reveals a strategic pivot, leveraging Web3 technologies to deeply integrate crypto, particularly stablecoins, into the global economic infrastructure, even as the broader crypto market remains in a "winter." The company processed $1.9 trillion in total payment volume in 2025, a 34% year-over-year increase, representing 1.6% of global GDP. This robust base supports its ambitious Web3 initiatives. A key insight is the "summer of stablecoins." Despite a crypto downturn, stablecoin payment volume doubled to $400 billion in 2025, with 60% originating from B2B transactions, demonstrating a shift from speculation to real-world utility. The acquisition of Bridge has been central to this strategy. Integrated into Stripe, Bridge's transaction volume grew over 4x. It now powers Stripe's fiat-to-crypto operations, partnered with Visa on a stablecoin payment card, and launched "Open Issuance" for businesses to easily create their own stablecoins. Privy, another acquisition, simplifies Web3 onboarding. Its API allows businesses to embed user-friendly wallets, supporting over 110 million programmable wallets and making the complexity of crypto "disappear" for end-users. Looking forward, Stripe is incubating Tempo, a new Layer-1 blockchain designed specifically for high-throughput payments, aiming to handle millions to billions of transactions per second to support the future of AI-driven "Agentic Commerce." Partnerships with companies like OpenAI are already building protocols for AI agents to autonomously transact. The letter concludes by hinting at a potential massive acquisition of PayPal, which would significantly boost Stripe's consumer-facing capabilities, though this remains speculative. The overarching narrative is clear: Stripe is building an internet-native financial system where stablecoins, seamless wallets, and powerful new blockchains form the backbone of global commerce and AI-driven transactions.

marsbit02/26 06:39

Decoding Stripe's 2025 Annual Letter: Even in the Crypto Winter, It's Still the Summer of Stablecoins

marsbit02/26 06:39

Stock Price Surges Over 35%! Circle's Earnings Report Exceeds Expectations: USDC Circulation Soars 72%

Circle (CRCL) reported strong Q4 and full-year 2025 financial results, with total revenue and reserve income reaching $770 million in Q4, up 77% year-over-year, exceeding expectations. This drove a 35% surge in its stock price. Key highlights include a 72% YoY increase in USDC circulation to $75.3 billion and a 247% rise in on-chain transaction volume to $11.9 trillion in Q4. Reserve income remained the core revenue driver at $733 million, while non-interest income reached $37 million. For the full year, total revenue grew 64% to $2.7 billion. Although the company reported a net loss of $70 million due to a one-time $424 million stock-based compensation expense from its IPO, adjusted EBITDA doubled to $582 million, indicating profitable core operations. Strategic developments include the stable testnet performance of its Arc blockchain, expansion of the Circle Payments Network with 55 financial institutions onboarded, and a key partnership with Polymarket to use native USDC. Regulatory progress includes conditional approval for a national trust bank. Looking ahead, Circle targets a 40% compound annual growth rate for USDC circulation. CEO Jeremy Allaire emphasized AI-driven payment demand, with 99% of agent-based payments currently using USDC. Despite challenges like declining yields and new competitors like USAT, Circle continues to execute its strategy as a growing internet financial infrastructure provider.

marsbit02/26 03:17

Stock Price Surges Over 35%! Circle's Earnings Report Exceeds Expectations: USDC Circulation Soars 72%

marsbit02/26 03:17

Why Has Ripple Spent $2.7 Billion In Acquisitions In 3 Years, And What Does It Have To Do With XRP?

Ripple, the largest XRP holder, has spent over $2.7 billion acquiring six companies in three years, including major purchases like Hidden Road ($1.25B), GTreasury ($1B), and Metaco ($250M). These acquisitions aim to bridge traditional and decentralized finance under CEO Brad Garlinghouse’s vision. Despite Ripple’s expansion and its treasury processing $13 trillion in non-crypto payments last year, the XRP community is concerned as these developments have not significantly boosted XRP’s price. Ripple plans to focus on integrating its acquisitions in early 2026.

bitcoinist02/26 00:02

Why Has Ripple Spent $2.7 Billion In Acquisitions In 3 Years, And What Does It Have To Do With XRP?

bitcoinist02/26 00:02

UK tests stablecoins in regulatory sandbox while proposing limits on user holdings

UK regulators are advancing a dual approach to stablecoin regulation, combining live testing within the Financial Conduct Authority’s sandbox with proposed limits on user holdings. The sandbox includes firms like Revolut and Monee Financial Technologies, trialing applications in payments, settlement, and crypto trading under strict supervision. Concurrently, the Bank of England has proposed temporary caps—£20,000 per stablecoin for individuals and £10 million for businesses—to mitigate systemic risks such as bank deposit flight. This cautious "test and contain" strategy aims to foster innovation in pound-denominated stablecoins while preventing rapid scaling until the market matures. The UK’s approach reflects the minor global role of non-dollar stablecoins and focuses on ensuring safe integration into the existing financial system.

ambcrypto02/25 21:12

UK tests stablecoins in regulatory sandbox while proposing limits on user holdings

ambcrypto02/25 21:12

‘AI agents can reason, but they cannot act’: MoonPay builds bridge to money

MoonPay, a global leader in crypto payments and stablecoin infrastructure, has launched MoonPay Agents to enable autonomous AI systems to access and use capital. Recognizing that "AI agents can reason, but they cannot act economically without capital infrastructure," the company built a bridge between AI reasoning and real-world financial execution. This allows verified AI agents to programmatically trade, swap, and move digital assets via non-custodial wallets. This development aligns with broader infrastructure shifts, such as machine-to-machine payment protocols and a surge in stablecoin adoption. Stablecoins are transforming settlement with faster speeds and lower costs compared to traditional card networks, with transaction volume reaching $33 trillion in 2025. Institutional adoption is growing, with nearly half of institutions using stablecoins for payments. Despite regulatory scrutiny and bank resistance, the agent economy is expanding rapidly, compressing legacy financial margins and reshaping the future of autonomous commerce.

ambcrypto02/25 16:01

‘AI agents can reason, but they cannot act’: MoonPay builds bridge to money

ambcrypto02/25 16:01

MoneyGram Joins Cardano’s Midnight As Federated Mainnet Validator

MoneyGram has joined Midnight, a privacy-focused blockchain built on Cardano, as a federated mainnet validator ahead of its planned March launch. This move highlights Midnight’s strategy of partnering with established, compliance-heavy operators from payments, telecom, and fintech—rather than crypto-native firms—to ensure reliability and operational stability from day one. MoneyGram, alongside partners like Vodafone’s Pairpoint and eToro, will help explore how traditional payment networks can leverage blockchain for confidential, compliant transactions without exposing sensitive data. The federated model is framed as a step toward future decentralization, signaling broader institutional adoption of privacy-enhancing blockchain infrastructure.

bitcoinist02/25 14:24

MoneyGram Joins Cardano’s Midnight As Federated Mainnet Validator

bitcoinist02/25 14:24

Here’s how Meta’s 2026 return could reshape stablecoin adoption

USDT's recent $3 billion market cap drop reflects a broader crypto liquidity drain, aligning with the market's $1 trillion loss. Despite this, Tether's fundamentals remain strong, maintaining 60% market share and expanding payment integrations. Analysts view this as a temporary shift rather than a sell-off, potentially marking a market inflection point. Meta's planned re-entry into stablecoins in late 2026, including partnerships and a digital wallet, could introduce over 3 billion users to crypto. This institutional push underscores stablecoins' structural strength, with USDT's bottom formation becoming a key liquidity metric for H2 market moves.

ambcrypto02/25 13:02

Here’s how Meta’s 2026 return could reshape stablecoin adoption

ambcrypto02/25 13:02

Meta Eyes Stripe Stablecoins for 2026 Rollout

Meta Platforms plans to integrate stablecoin payments into Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp in the second half of 2026, with Stripe likely as the infrastructure partner. This marks a strategic shift from its failed Libra project, as Meta will not issue its own token but instead rely on third-party stablecoins, positioning itself as a distribution layer. The focus is on reducing costs and speeding up cross-border payments for creators, particularly for small amounts. Regulatory clarity from the 2025 GENIUS Act and Stripe’s regulated infrastructure may enable a compliance-first approach. Meta has not disclosed which stablecoins will be supported or specific implementation details.

TheNewsCrypto02/25 12:21

Meta Eyes Stripe Stablecoins for 2026 Rollout

TheNewsCrypto02/25 12:21

Stripe Explores PayPal Acquisition: Report

Stripe is reportedly exploring an acquisition of PayPal, a move that could significantly reshape the global payments industry. According to sources, early-stage talks are underway, though no deal has been finalized. The potential acquisition comes as Stripe’s valuation recently surged to $159 billion, reflecting its rapid growth. Meanwhile, PayPal has faced increasing competition from Apple Pay and Google Pay, leadership changes, and declining stock performance. Both companies have also expanded into digital assets, with PayPal launching a stablecoin and Stripe receiving regulatory approval for its crypto platform. A merger could create a dominant player in both traditional and blockchain-based payments, highlighting ongoing consolidation in the fintech sector.

TheNewsCrypto02/25 07:30

Stripe Explores PayPal Acquisition: Report

TheNewsCrypto02/25 07:30

The Person Who 'Killed' PayPal Wants to Buy It

A potential acquisition that could reshape the global payments landscape is under discussion, as Stripe—valued at $159 billion—is reportedly considering acquiring all or parts of PayPal, which has a market cap of just $43 billion. The news drove PayPal’s stock up nearly 7%. PayPal has faced significant challenges: its stock fell 46% over the past year amid rising competition from Apple Pay, Google Pay, and agile rivals like Adyen and Stripe. Despite its vast user network of 438 million active accounts and strong presence in cross-border transactions, PayPal has struggled to keep pace with shifting user behaviors and the rise of embedded and social payments. However, PayPal retains valuable assets, including Braintree (processing around $700 billion annually), Venmo (with 100 million monthly active users), and a deeply entrenched global payments infrastructure. A key underlying motive for the deal is stablecoins. PayPal launched its own stablecoin, PYUSD, adopting a centralized approach to digital currency. In contrast, Stripe has pursued an infrastructure-focused strategy, acquiring stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge and launching “Open Issuance”—a platform that enables businesses to issue their own stablecoins. Stripe is also developing Tempo, a Layer-1 blockchain aimed at challenging traditional settlement networks like SWIFT. A combined Stripe-PayPal entity could create a powerful Web3 payment ecosystem, integrating PYUSD with Tempo’s fast, low-cost transactions and leveraging Venmo’s user base. This could also support emerging use cases like AI Agent payments, where machines transact autonomously using crypto wallets. Regulatory and cultural hurdles remain significant, and the deal is still in early stages. But the talks signal a broader industry shift: future dominance in payments may belong to those who control next-generation infrastructure, not just scale.

比推02/24 23:42