This is Circle’s (and most stablecoin issuers’) problem. There is currently no obvious value proposition here for a merchant in a developed economy to take stables. Let’s look at why.

But wait! Isn’t 1% better than the 1.5-3.5% typical fee merchants pay for credit card txns? Well, yes. But sending stablecoins is mostly like a debit card today. Credit card fees include risk of non-payment & higher fraud rate. The fees are financial requirements, not technical

But maybe a shop in Provence or bodega in NYC could get new customers? Let’s be real. If you live in the US or EU, you already have access to at least cash, and probably other payment methods already supported.

So where DO stablecoins have a value proposition? One is in instant settlement. But we don’t always want that! I pay everything on my credit card bc I have a month to contest a charge, while my debit card can drain my bank account. Sound a lot like getting your wallet drained?

The main one is in meeting unmet demand for specific currency (usually USD). Half the paper USD, and trillions in USD-denominated bank deposits, are abroad. This is why Tether eats everyone’s lunch. They’re not chasing a few DeFi degens or small retailers in rich countries

In the end, the shop in France taking EURC is neat. Even cool. But neat and cool like how I grow my own tomatoes bc I enjoy it, not because I can grow tomatoes cheaper than a farmer in Argentina or Mexico can put them on an airplane and send them to me.