Stablecoins have emerged as the preferred payment instrument in blockchain-enabled ecosystems. But they mostly operate in closed loops. To matter, they will need to adapt to open loop applications through generalised clearing as a foundation for scalability in payments. The increase in volumes of stablecoins has been considerable but values remain small in total payments. The stock of stablecoins was about $210bn at end-February, up from $140bn in the same period last year, while monthly global transaction values increased by 50% over the past 12 months to $710bn (Visa). This compares to about $810bn (US, 2022) and ... (full story)