a16z: Crypto Payment Cards Swipe $759 Million in a Single Month, a 2.5x Increase in One Year, with Dollar Stablecoins Dominating the Entire Field

marsbitОпубліковано о 2026-08-10Востаннє оновлено о 2026-08-10

Анотація

Stablecoins are rapidly moving from on-chain assets to practical payment tools, with crypto payment cards now processing over $759 million in monthly spending, a 2.5x increase from a year ago. These cards allow users to spend cryptocurrencies at traditional merchants by instantly converting them (primarily stablecoins) to local currency. This provides dollar-based financial access even for the unbanked. In July, nearly 9 million transactions were made, averaging about $86 each. The underlying settlement landscape has shifted from being concentrated on Gnosis to a multi-chain environment, with Optimism, Solana, and Base now handling most of the volume. US dollar stablecoins have completely dominated the market, with USDC and USDT accounting for 84% of all card spending, replacing the early dominance of euro-backed stablecoins like EURe. Nearly all this activity flows through the traditional Visa card network. This growth signifies stablecoins' increasing integration into mainstream payment systems, expanding global access to digital dollars through familiar spending mechanisms.

Author: a16z crypto

Compiled by: Shenchao TechFlow

Deep Tide Introduction: Stablecoins are no longer just on-chain numbers; they can now be used to swipe a card to buy coffee. Crypto payment cards have exceeded a monthly transaction volume of $750 million, growing 2.5 times in a year. Behind nearly 9 million transactions, USDC and USDT account for 84% of the share, with Visa becoming the biggest winner. This card allows people without bank accounts to spend dollars, and stablecoins are infiltrating the payment system in the most traditional way.

The scale of spending stablecoins via card swipes is growing rapidly.

Crypto payment cards have evolved from a novelty to a business with a monthly transaction volume exceeding $750 million. These cards allow people to pay with cryptocurrency anywhere that accepts traditional card networks. The underlying mechanism is that cryptocurrency (overwhelmingly stablecoins) is instantly converted to local currency at the time of payment, so for merchants, the transaction is indistinguishable from an ordinary card swipe.

Holders of crypto cards do not need a traditional bank account. Depending on the project, users either deposit stablecoins with the card issuer or hold them directly in self-custody on-chain. Crypto cards expand global access to dollar-denominated accounts and provide a convenient way for stablecoin holders to transact.

July Single Month Swipe: $759 Million, a 2.5x Increase in One Year

The monthly transaction volume of crypto payment cards reached $759 million in July, an increase of about 2.5 times from $306 million a year earlier, and was less than $1 million when tracking began in October 2023. These figures reflect the on-chain activity of card projects tracked by Paymentscan. (For the highest-volume project, RedotPay, spending data is self-reported by the issuer, not from on-chain observations.)

The growth trend in purchase frequency for crypto payment cards is similar to the transaction volume growth. Purchase frequency using crypto payment cards approached 9 million times in July, up from about 5.2 million times a year ago.

This indicates an average transaction amount of about $86.

Optimism, Solana, and Base Form a Tripartite Division

At the beginning of 2024, crypto card spending was concentrated on a single chain: Gnosis, the home of Gnosis Pay (the first Visa card directly connected to a self-custody wallet). As new card projects launched, the number of chains used for card settlement has expanded.

According to Paymentscan data, as of July, Optimism handled about 29% of crypto card spending volume, Solana about 19%, and Base about 19%. Gnosis has declined to about 2%.

Dollar Stablecoins Fully Dominate, USDC + USDT Account for 84%

Euro-backed stablecoins once dominated spending: in early 2024, about 88% of crypto card transactions were settled in EURe, mostly on Gnosis. By July, EURe's share had dropped to about 2%.

U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins have now taken the lead. USDC handles about 58% of card spending, and USDT about 26%, up from about 48% and 7% a year ago, respectively. Crypto payment card spending is now almost entirely conducted in digital dollars.

Visa Grabs Almost All Share

Compared to traditional card networks that process trillions of dollars monthly, crypto payment cards remain a small market.

But as stablecoins gain more ground in the global financial system, including via the rails of existing major card networks. For the tracked projects, this is happening almost entirely through Visa.

Crypto payment cards are part of the broader crypto acceleration following GENIUS, which we have been tracking here. This includes the rapid adoption of stablecoins and tokenized assets.

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Пов'язані питання

QWhat was the monthly transaction volume of crypto payment cards in July, and how much growth does this represent compared to a year earlier?

AIn July, the monthly transaction volume of crypto payment cards reached $759 million. This represents a growth of approximately 2.5 times compared to the $306 million volume from a year earlier.

QWhich stablecoins currently dominate crypto card spending, and what is their combined market share as of July?

ADollar-backed stablecoins, specifically USDC and USDT, dominate crypto card spending. As of July, USDC accounts for approximately 58% and USDT for 26%, giving them a combined market share of 84%.

QWhat are the top three blockchains for crypto card spending settlement as of July, and what were their approximate shares?

AAs of July, the top three blockchains for crypto card spending settlement were Optimism (approximately 29%), Solana (approximately 19%), and Base (approximately 19%).

QHow has the role of the Gnosis blockchain and the EURe stablecoin changed in the crypto card market from early 2024 to July?

AIn early 2024, the Gnosis blockchain was dominant, with about 88% of crypto card spending settled using the EURe stablecoin. By July, Gnosis's share had fallen to about 2%, and EURe's share had also declined to approximately 2%.

QWhich traditional card network is primarily used by the crypto payment card projects tracked in the article?

AFor the crypto payment card projects tracked in the article, transactions occur almost entirely through the Visa network.

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