The Fungibility of Stablecoins: Unlocking cross-border payments or fragmenting the global financial system?

Stablecoins are emerging as a serious contender for cross-border transactions, offering faster settlement, lower costs, and reduced reliance on traditional banking rails. Recent developments signal that major payment service providers (PSPs) are beginning to explore stablecoins as part of their core infrastructure, while other incumbents have maintained their commitment to fiat-based transactions.

Herein also lies the question of fungibility. Are all stablecoins truly exchangeable across networks, jurisdictions and use cases, or do regulatory and operational constraints create fragmentation risks? If stablecoins are to become a mainstay in global payments, PSPs must navigate liquidity, compliance and interoperability challenges that could either accelerate adoption or hinder scalability.

Discussion themes:

1. The growing role of stablecoins in cross-border payments - Are lower costs, instant settlement, and financial inclusion advantages enough to drive broader PSP adoption?
2. Strategic moves in the payments industry – What does the acquisition of a stablecoin platform signal about the future of PSP-stablecoin integration, and will it force competitors to reconsider their stance on stablecoins?
3. The fungibility challenge - How do differences in issuance models, reserve structures, and regulatory classifications affect stablecoins' usability across different payment rails and jurisdictions?
4. Regulatory and market barriers – What are key regulatory, liquidity, and operational challenges preventing PSPs from fully embedding stablecoin-powered payments into their infrastructure? What's needed to bridge the gap between stablecoins and traditional finance?

This session is held in collaboration with the Ripple Policy Summit.