Block, Inc.’s Cash App has added stablecoin payments to its roster of financial services. The financial services app now allows users to send and receive USDC on four blockchains: Ethereum, Solana, Polygon and Arbitrum. The company’s Bitcoin Product Lead, Miles Suter, said on X that “everything runs from your existing USD balance — no separate wallet, no managing multiple chains, no extra setup, and importantly no fees.” You simply send dollars from your wallet to a copy-pasted blockchain address, without any mention of stablecoins. That said, the company remains “singularly focused on bitcoin becoming the native currency of the internet,” Suter said. Block, Inc. Chairman and CEO Jack Dorsey remains…
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Upshift’s New Vault Platform Allows Instant RWA Redemption
USDC vaults will provide instant liquidity to RWA holders
Onchain vault provider Upshift has partnered with asset tokenization firm Superstate to launch a new redemption platform for tokenized real-world assets. Upshift Clear will bridge the settlement gap in the real-world asset (RWA) tokenization sector by “applying the logic of traditional bridging capital onchain,” Upshift said in a release Dedicated USDC stablecoin vaults will provide instant liquidity to RWA holders via a loan when they want to redeem assets. RWA holders looking to settle sales will be “fronted” capital instantly, making the settlement process “T+0… regardless of market hours or banking holidays.” Normally, the process involves offchain infrastructure, net asset value (NAV) calculations, custodian processes, and the use of bank…
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Coinbase Announces Global Stablecoin Payments Partnership
Western Union ready to launch stablecoin
Crypto exchange Coinbase has partnered with real-time cross-border payments firm Nium to bring stablecoin payments to its 190-plus country network. The goal is to replace the slow and costly SWIFT-based traditional banking services, which can take days to complete. The transactions can be made in stablecoins and paid out in local fiat currencies. Coinbase brings wallet infrastructure, stablecoin liquidity, custody, and on-ramps to Nium, as well as handling regulatory compliance. The system will use Circle’s USDC stablecoins. USDC is the second-largest stablecoin issuer, with almost $78 billion in circulation. So far the partnership is aimed at providing business and banking customers with real-time payment capabilities, freeing them from the need…
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Circle Won’t Freeze Stolen USDC Without Court Order
CEO Allaire defends refusal to act during hacks
In the face of growing criticism, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire defended the USDC-issuer’s policy of refusing to freeze its stablecoins immediately after hacks and exploits. While leading stablecoin issuer Tether freezes its USDT stablecoins if it can be done in time — often within hours of a reported hack — to prevent stolen funds from being moved, Circle does not. It has been criticized for refusing to act while stolen funds are still in a position to be seized and restored to their rightful owners. Speaking during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, Allaire explained that as a regulated financial product, it cannot freeze tokens on a…
