Evolving Money: Stablecoins in Practice and Policy (Sponsored Content)

This sponsored episode of 'Evolving Money,' co-produced by Coinbase and Bloomberg Media Studios, explores the growing role of stablecoins in global finance, both in practice and policy. Host Angie Lau interviews Moran Kilbeci, Chief Product Officer at Checkout.com, who details the company's five-year journey with stablecoin settlement—initially launched in 2021 but paused due to regulatory uncertainty, now being relaunched with a focus on enabling borderless, 24/7 payments for enterprise merchants. The episode highlights how stablecoins are already facilitating over $30 trillion in transactions annually, outpacing traditional card networks, and are poised to transform cross-border commerce, especially in developing economies with unstable currencies. Faryar Shurzad, Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer, discusses the evolving U.S. regulatory landscape, including the passage of the Genius Act and proactive regulatory sandboxing by agencies like the CFTC, which are accelerating innovation. He also addresses resistance from incumbent financial institutions fearing disruption to their economic rents, while emphasizing the global momentum toward tokenized national currencies—especially in the UK and Canada—as a response to the U.S.'s early leadership in stablecoin adoption. The episode paints a picture of a financial future where digital, stable, and instantly settleable money becomes the norm, driven by both technological readiness and policy evolution. Key takeaways include: 1) Stablecoins are already a $30+ trillion transactional force, with major financial players like Checkout.com integrating them for faster, cheaper, borderless payments; 2) Regulatory clarity—especially through the Genius Act and proactive enforcement—is critical to unlocking innovation and investor confidence; 3) The U.S. is leading globally in stablecoin adoption, prompting other nations to develop their own tokenized currencies to remain relevant; 4) Incumbent financial institutions are pushing back against rapid change, fearing loss of intermediation profits, but the momentum toward instant settlement and decentralized liquidity is hard to stop; 5) Harmonization of regulations across jurisdictions is not mandatory but highly beneficial for global financial product development and cross-border liquidity access.