In a rapidly evolving financial landscape, the adoption of stablecoins has gained remarkable traction, according to Stripe CEO Patrick Collison. He shared his insights in a Hacker News thread on September 5, 2025, coinciding with the announcement of Tempo, a blockchain designed specifically for stablecoin payments, launched by Stripe and Paradigm.
A Shift in Perspective
Collison candidly admitted that Stripe had been somewhat disillusioned with the payments utility of cryptocurrencies over the past decade. However, this discontent began to fade as more businesses started leveraging stablecoins for routine financial operations. The turning point, as Collison noted, was the acquisition of Bridge, a stablecoin infrastructure provider, in October 2024. This acquisition paved the way for Stripe to harness the potential of stablecoins, providing a bridge to smooth and efficient financial transactions.
Real-World Applications
What’s particularly intriguing is how diverse businesses are utilizing stablecoins through Stripe’s platform. SpaceX, for instance, employs this technology to navigate money flows in hard-to-reach markets. Latin American fintech DolarApp uses it for banking services, while an Argentinian bike importer relies on Stripe’s dashboard to pay suppliers. Collison emphasized that these companies aren’t jumping on the crypto bandwagon for speculative gains. Instead, they’re performing essential financial activities and finding stablecoins to be superior to traditional systems in terms of speed, cost, and reliability.
Behind-the-Scenes Innovation
When questioned about the potential for consumers to “pay with Tempo” directly, Collison clarified that the blockchain is meant to be a background player, akin to financial messaging systems like SWIFT or ACH. Consumers may not directly interact with Tempo, but they will undoubtedly benefit from its enhanced efficiency. He likened Tempo to a “decentralized, internet-scale SWIFT,” which, though not a perfect analogy, captures the essence of its intended function.
The Appeal of Stablecoins
Collison articulated five compelling reasons businesses are gravitating toward stablecoins: near-instant settlement, reduced costs compared to card payments, enhanced reliability in cross-border transfers, fewer currency conversions, and direct on-chain access to U.S. dollars. He dismissed the notion that this adoption is primarily driven by regulatory loopholes. With stablecoins now explicitly regulated under the GENIUS Act in the United States and MiCA in Europe, their attraction lies in resolving the frictions of large-scale money movement.
Tempo: A Payments-First Blockchain
The announcement of Tempo heralded a new era for stablecoin payments. Described as a “payments-first” blockchain, it combines Stripe’s global payments expertise with Paradigm’s crypto research. Tempo is tailored to meet real-world payment needs as stablecoins increasingly permeate mainstream finance. Its design focuses on predictable low fees, optional privacy, and the ability to conduct transactions and pay gas costs in any stablecoin. EVM-compatible and running on the Reth client, Tempo is engineered to process over 100,000 transactions per second with sub-second finality.
Global Reach and Governance
Tempo aims to facilitate global payouts, payroll, remittances, tokenized deposits, embedded financial accounts, microtransactions, and what are termed “agentic payments.” Stripe and Paradigm have underscored the importance of governance, ensuring that Tempo operates as a neutral platform for stablecoins, secured by a diverse and independent validator set. There’s a clear roadmap towards fully permissionless validation, reflecting a commitment to transparency and neutrality.
A Broad Coalition
The project launched with an impressive roster of design partners, including industry giants like Visa, Standard Chartered, Deutsche Bank, and innovative companies such as Nubank, Revolut, Shopify, OpenAI, Anthropic, Coupang, DoorDash, Lead Bank, and Mercury. These collaborations signal a significant vote of confidence in Tempo’s potential to revolutionize the stablecoin payment landscape.
In conclusion, Patrick Collison’s remarks underscore a pivotal moment in the evolution of cryptocurrency payments. As businesses increasingly turn to stablecoins for their transactional needs, platforms like Tempo offer a glimpse into a future where financial transactions are not only faster and cheaper but also more reliable and accessible. This shift could well define the next chapter in the ongoing saga of digital finance.
Steve Gregory is a lawyer in the United States who specializes in licensing for cryptocurrency companies and products. Steve began his career as an attorney in 2015 but made the switch to working in cryptocurrency full time shortly after joining the original team at Gemini Trust Company, an early cryptocurrency exchange based in New York City. Steve then joined CEX.io and was able to launch their regulated US-based cryptocurrency. Steve then went on to become the CEO at currency.com when he ran for four years and was able to lead currency.com to being fully acquired in 2025.
