The $300 billion sector of stablecoins, initially designed as a rapid method for international money transfers, has evolved with businesses exploring their potential uses beyond mere transactions. This evolution is fostering new adoption phases, according to Chunda McCain, co-founder of Paxos Labs, who highlights the industry’s transition from basic infrastructure to practical business applications.
“First was acquiring a stablecoin,” McCain noted in an interview with CoinDesk. “The next query is: what are we doing now?”
Paxos Labs recently emphasized this strategic shift by securing $12 million in funding led by Blockchain Capital, along with contributions from Robot Ventures, Maelstrom, and Uniswap. Originally incubated under Paxos—a New York-based digital asset company known for its stablecoins such as PayPal’s PYUSD and Global Dollar—Paxos Labs focuses on developing tools to leverage these stablecoins further.
With the newly acquired capital, Paxos Labs is constructing what it refers to as a “financial utility stack,” enabling businesses to convert digital assets into products through seamless integration. The Amplify Suite, recently launched by Paxos Labs, includes three essential tools: Earn for generating yield on digital assets, Borrow for lending against them, and Mint for creating branded stablecoins.
According to McCain, while early enterprise crypto adoption centered around initial capabilities like trading, custody, or issuing stablecoins—steps that typically didn’t yield direct returns in themselves—the real value emerges in how these assets are utilized. For instance, merchants traditionally incur 2% to 3% fees for payments; however, using stablecoin rails can reduce these expenses and even generate yields on balances held on-chain.
“You’re transforming what has always been an expense into income,” he explained.
Innovative use cases are emerging at the intersection of payments and credit. Payment providers, already equipped with data on merchant revenues and cash flows, could underwrite loans based on this information, McCain suggested. This capability might enable merchants to access financing grounded in real-time performance while earning yields on incoming payments and settling transactions instantly across borders.
These models are still nascent, but the foundational elements are beginning to align, according to McCain. To reap these benefits, companies do not necessarily need to create their own stablecoins. While firms like PayPal have introduced branded tokens to manage payments and margins—a process demanding substantial investment in liquidity, compliance, and distribution—many businesses can leverage existing stablecoins to gain economic advantages.
“If you’re primarily interested in the economics, there’s no need to develop your own,” McCain stated.
Despite lacking the excitement associated with major corporations like Western Union launching their own tokens, this shift presents a practical impact on business operations. Stablecoins are increasingly influencing profit margins, unlocking credit, and altering global money movement, especially where traditional systems remain costly or inefficient.
“It might not be flashy, but it’s all about the numbers,” McCain concluded.