As stablecoins move from speculative tools to digital dollars, a growing number of businesses are beginning to explore their utility for real-world commerce. From faster cross-border payments to streamlined treasury operations, stablecoins like USDC offer advantages that traditional payment rails often can't match. With companies like SpaceX using stablecoins to transfer money to the US after selling satellites in foreign counties, and Shopify enabling merchants to get paid in USDC, it's clear the momentum is no longer theoretical.
So where do banks and credit unions fit into this future?
The answer: right at the center—if they act now. By partnering with a stablecoin issuer such as Circle and deploying a high-performance ledger to track individual balances, financial institutions can offer a suite of commercial stablecoin services that help retain deposits, generate fee revenue, and reassert relevance in a real-time global economy.
Five Example Commercial Use Cases Banks and Credit Unions Can Enable Today
1. Gig Economy Payouts
Freelancers and contractors across the globe can be paid instantly in USDC, avoiding delays, high remittance fees, and unstable local currencies. Platforms like Upwork can pay workers directly to a wallet, eliminating the need for elaborate payment networks or intermediary banks.
Banks and credit unions can play a vital role in making remote work more viable worldwide by serving as the front end that powers secure payments.
2. Cross-Border Business Payments
Global supply chains depend on fast, reliable settlement. Instead of initiating a SWIFT wire and waiting 2–5 days, a business can use USDC to pay vendors in seconds, with full visibility and traceability.
Global marketplaces like Airbnb or Amazon-style platforms can pay sellers and hosts in different countries using USDC. No need for local payment processors, banks, or currency conversions. USDC enables fast, low-cost payouts directly to a user’s crypto wallet, and recipients can convert or spend it locally using crypto-native or partner services.
In a world powered by USDC, the concept of “cross-border” starts to disappear, replaced by seamless, global money movement.
3. Treasury Optimization and 24x7 Sweeps
Corporate treasurers can move idle cash into stablecoins to enable after-hours settlements or real-time liquidity. A bank or credit union can offer this service to corporate clients when partnering with a stablecoin issuer like Circle for a liquidity layer and a modern ledger like Matera’s Digital Twin to track balances in individual accounts.
4. Revenue Collection in USDC
Many crypto-native and global businesses already receive payments in USDC. Banks and credit unions can support these flows by offering USDC deposit accounts, giving businesses an alternative to off-bank wallets.
5. Tokenized Fundraising
Real estate developers or startups can raise capital globally by issuing tokenized debt or equity, accepting USDC from international investors. This simplifies fundraising by avoiding complex bank processes and enables broader participation. Smart contracts can also bring transparency and automation to repayment terms.
What Financial Institutions Bring to the Table
While fintechs and stablecoin-native platforms have been first movers, banks and credit unions have the customer trust needed to bring stablecoins into the mainstream. By embedding USDC and payment functionality into their commercial offerings, they can:
- Preserve and grow corporate deposit relationships
- Generate non-interest revenue from stablecoin flows
- Support corporate innovation without ceding control to fintechs
How It Works: Circle + Digital Twin
Circle serves as the issuer and on-chain custodian of USDC. The bank or credit union holds an aggregate USDC position with Circle, while Matera’s Digital Twin operates as a real-time sub-ledger that tracks each business customer's share of that total.
With this model, banks don’t have to manage individual blockchain wallets or private keys for their customers, eliminating the risk of lost credentials or wallet recovery issues. No Core replacement is required either. Just real-time stablecoin infrastructure that works, delivered through a digital ledger like Digital Twin that runs in parallel with the Core.
Final Thoughts
Stablecoins have both retail and commercial applications. Commercial clients are already exploring how digital dollars can solve real business problems, and they’re looking for a trusted partner to help them do it.
Banks and credit unions have a powerful opportunity to step in. With the right infrastructure, they can deliver a stablecoin experience that’s fully embedded in the banking relationship.