As Bitcoin approaches a new all-time high of $112,000, the U.S. "Genius Act" stablecoin regulation looms on the horizon, marking deeper integration between crypto and the global economy. It’s now clear: payment systems are crypto’s crown jewel, and BTC is the gem atop it. This explains why PayFi, U-Cards, and RWA have become battlegrounds for exchanges and crypto projects. In the future, tailored payment solutions for real-world industries may emerge.
Here, Odaily Planet Daily examines stablecoins’ past and future.
In 2008, a paper titled Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System appeared on the P2P Foundation website, authored by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto. Born in the aftermath of the subprime mortgage crisis, Bitcoin sought to challenge centralized monetary systems and sluggish global payments. Yet, ironically, it wasn’t BTC but dollar-pegged stablecoins that fulfilled Satoshi’s payment vision.
Tether’s ascent can be distilled into three phases:
Embedding into Crypto’s Lifeblood (2014–2019)
Launched in 2014 via Bitcoin’s Omni Protocol, USDT debuted on Bitfinex in 2015 (whose CTO, Paolo Ardoino, also led Tether).
In 2018, ERC-20 USDT leveraged Ethereum’s boom, while a 2019 partnership with Tron saw TRON host over a third of USDT’s supply.
Tether’s redemption-fee model solidified its role as crypto’s oil—the de facto trading benchmark.
Expanding Beyond Crypto (2020–2022)
DeFi Summer turbocharged stablecoin adoption, with USDT dominating as a hedge against inflation, a cross-border tool, and even a shadow dollar in unstable economies.
Tether’s profits fueled investments in Treasuries, gold, and BTC, weaving it deeper into traditional finance—and drawing scrutiny as a "money laundering vehicle."
From Payments to Store of Value (2023–Present)
After settling with U.S. regulators (including a $41M CFTC fine), USDT shed its wild-west image.
Backed by Treasuries and a ironclad 1:1 peg, it became a digital dollar twin, earning trust as a safe haven alongside BTC.
Tether’s playbook? "Capture the market through utility, then legitimize through scale."
Unlike Tether, Circle’s USDC took a regulatory-first approach:
Reliant on partnerships (e.g., Coinbase), its profits were thinner, pushing it toward an IPO to secure traditional capital and clout.
Other stablecoins—DAI, PYUSD, RLUSD—jostle for niches, but none rival USDT’s dominance.
The U.S. Senate’s pending Genius Act aims to:
Fortify Dollar Hegemony: Bind stablecoins to the USD as a geopolitical tool.
Control the System: Ensure U.S. oversight of global crypto payments and trade.
Enforce Transparency: Mandate 1:1 reserves, monthly audits, and banking-grade rules for large issuers.
Unlock RWA: Stablecoins are proto-RWA; the Act could open doors to trillions in tokenized assets.
For Trump’s administration, this completes crypto’s regulatory trifecta post-BTC/ETH ETFs.
By 2025, crypto ownership may have peaked, but payment demand is universal. The next 10 years (2025–2035) will likely see:
Crypto Equities: Stocks like Strategy and Metaplanet already serve as proxies for tokenized assets.
ETH/Solana Dominance: Their ecosystems remain innovation hubs, even as finance absorbs crypto’s energy.
In the end, stablecoins—not BTC—realized Satoshi’s dream of peer-to-peer payments. The twist? They did so by reinforcing the dollar’s supremacy, not dismantling it.
As the Genius Act reshapes the landscape, one truth endures: Money evolves, but power consolidates.
