DoorDash, Meta pilots could expand stablecoin use, Bitwise

DoorDash and Meta have launched limited pilots using stablecoins for payments, and Bitwise’s chief investment officer, Matt Hougan, wrote that the tests could help push the stablecoin market toward a projected $4 trillion by 2030.

Meta began paying creators in the Philippines and Colombia last week. DoorDash announced on April 21 that it would offer stablecoin payments to users, couriers and merchants. Hougan called those experiments “the real killer app of stablecoins,” writing that while the dollar amounts are small, they address whether stablecoins can be used beyond crypto trading.

The combined market value of stablecoins is just under $318 billion. A Citigroup forecast referenced by industry participants outlines a best-case path to about $4 trillion by 2030.

Hougan wrote that for stablecoins to reach hundreds of millions of users they must expand from trading into routine payments and win support from very large companies. He added operational benefits for firms, writing: “One wallet address, no banking infrastructure, no currency conversions. For a global business managing millions of micropayments, that type of simplicity is worth a lot.”

Payments firms and technology companies have run several pilots. Visa expanded a pilot to add five blockchains to its stablecoin settlement network as settlement volumes grew.

U.S. lawmakers passed the GENIUS Act last year, creating a framework for how stablecoin issuers should back tokens. The law has been cited by some companies as a reason to test the technology.

U.S. banks have lobbied for restrictions on stablecoins, arguing the tokens compete with bank deposits and could pose risks to the banking system. Legislation under consideration in the Senate would bar trading platforms from paying rewards on idle stablecoin holdings while permitting other reward structures; banking groups have said the proposed language does not fully address their concerns.

Industry participants point to lower friction and reduced costs for international transfers and micropayments as drivers of corporate interest. Other stakeholders highlight potential financial stability and consumer protection issues if stablecoins scale without stricter regulatory controls.