Remittances are a financial lifeline for nearly 800 million people worldwide. In 2024, migrants sent approximately $685 billion to low- and middle-income countries, helping pay for family expenses, support local communities and—with these flows accounting for over 3% of GDP in more than 80 countries—even stabilize national balance sheets.
But sending money home is still harder and more expensive than it should be. Fees can eat up more than 6% of the total sent, transfers can take days to fully settle and access to formal financial services remains limited in many parts of the world.
Stablecoin remittances are changing that. These blockchain-based digital assets unlock faster, cheaper and more inclusive ways to move money across borders, modernizing and improving the remittance experience for senders and recipients alike.
What are Stablecoin Remittances?
Stablecoins are digital assets designed to maintain a consistent value. Typically pegged to fiat currencies like USD or EUR, they minimize the volatility often associated with other cryptocurrencies, offering a stable and practical alternative for everyday transactions.
When using stablecoins for remittances, individuals can send payments directly to recipients without having to navigate legacy banking infrastructure. For example, instead of initiating a traditional remittance payment through Western Union or MoneyGram, someone in the US can send money to a family member in the Philippines by purchasing a stablecoin, like Ripple’s RLUSD, through a digital wallet or exchange. That stablecoin is then transmitted across a blockchain network directly to the recipient’s wallet, where it can either be held, spent or exchanged into local currency. All of this can happen in minutes, not days, and with far fewer fees in between.
This model is especially promising for emerging markets, where stablecoin remittances can offer a more accessible and reliable alternative to legacy banking infrastructure. This use case is contributing to an overall growth in stablecoin adoption, with the average supply of stablecoins in circulation having grown by roughly 28% year-over-year. Total stablecoin transfer volume reached $27.6 trillion in 2024—surpassing the combined transaction volume of Visa and Mastercard.
Stablecoins vs Traditional Remittances
Sending money across borders using a traditional bank or remittance service can sometimes feel like navigating an obstacle course while wearing a blindfold. Payments often pass through multiple intermediaries, which can add several days to settlement times, limit transparency and chip away at the total transaction value because of added fees, foreign exchange (FX) costs, failed payments or errors, and hidden charges.
Stablecoins offer a better path. Built on blockchain, stablecoin remittances move instantly and directly without intermediaries, independent of traditional business hours. Even on holidays and weekends, all payments settle in real time and are verifiable onchain so that both sender and recipient gain peace of mind.
This lack of intermediaries also reduces excessive fees, preserving the total value of a payment. And because stablecoins are accessible through mobile or digital wallets, they expand financial access to people who don't—or can’t—use traditional banks. According to the World Bank, around 1.4 billion adults globally remain unbanked. Ripple’s ongoing work, particularly through its Impact initiatives, supports a future where digital assets and mobile-first solutions help close this financial access gap. In Africa, where mobile money adoption is surging, these tools offer a promising pathway to inclusion for the many who are excluded from traditional finance systems.
Comparison of Stablecoin Versus Traditional Remittances
Traditional Remittances | Stablecoin Remittances | |
Speed | Days to settle | Near-instant settlement, 24/7/365 availability |
Cost | ~6.4% in fees + FX costs | Lower fees, no FX markups |
Transparency | Limited tracking | Fully traceable and verifiable |
Accessibility | Bank or cash-in location needed | Digital-first, no bank required |
Reliability | Subject to delays and failures | Onchain settlement, fewer errors |
Key Benefits of Stablecoin Remittances
Speed & Availability
Traditional remittance transactions can take days to arrive because of the large number of intermediaries in the payment flow, traditional banking hours, limited access to traditional financial institutions, human error and other delays. But stablecoin remittances operate around the clock and settle in near real-time without bottlenecks or settlement queues. Combined with a global payment solution that offers payouts in hard-to-reach corridors like Africa, Latin America, or parts of Asia, families can access funds when they need them and receive payment in their preferred local currency.
Lower Transaction Fees
Traditional remittances often involve a chain of intermediaries, each taking a cut. Stablecoins eliminate those middlemen, enabling more direct and efficient transfers with minimal fees. That leaves more money in the hands of the people it’s meant for.
Financial Inclusion
Stablecoin remittances can be received through digital or mobile wallets, offering an on-ramp to digital finance for the unbanked and underbanked, especially in regions where mobile devices outnumber bank accounts.
Transparency & Security
Because stablecoin transactions live on public blockchains, they’re traceable, verifiable and tamper-proof. Senders can track their money throughout, and recipients know exactly when a payment arrives.
Stability in Volatile Economies
In regions experiencing high inflation or currency devaluation, stablecoins—especially those pegged to strong fiat currencies like the US dollar—offer a more reliable store of value.
Real-World Examples of Stablecoin Remittances
The advantages of blockchain-based remittances have already sparked a rise in stablecoin adoption and usage across the globe.
Fintech platforms like Bitso have leveraged stablecoins such as USDC to facilitate low-cost cross-border payments between the U.S. and countries like Mexico, and Argentina, enabling workers to send remittances more efficiently to family members back home. These stablecoin-powered transfers bypass legacy financial rails, allowing near-instant settlement and significant cost savings.
Visa has also embraced stablecoin technology to modernize remittance and settlement infrastructure across emerging markets. In June 2025, the company expanded its stablecoin settlement capabilities to Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) through a partnership with fintech platform Yellow Card. This initiative enables cross-border payments using USD Coin (USDC) on blockchain, allowing users to send and receive funds with faster settlement, greater transparency, and lower costs. With over $225 million in stablecoin settlements already processed globally, Visa’s expansion marks a major step forward in using blockchain-based solutions to improve financial access and efficiency across underserved regions.
These real-world examples reflect broader market trends. Ripple’s 2025 New Value Report found that stablecoins outperform other digital asset types in two areas critical to global payments, accelerating cross-border transactions and simplifying currency exchange. As a result, stablecoin remittances are fast gaining traction across the financial ecosystem. Fintechs and blockchain platforms are racing to build the infrastructure needed to support this momentum at scale.
Ripple’s own stablecoin, RLUSD, is compliance focused and purpose-built for payments. Designed to maintain a constant value of one US dollar, it enables seamless, near-instant cross-border settlement with easy on- and off-ramping between stablecoins, fiat, and crypto assets.
Considerations and Challenges
As with any transformative technology, stablecoin remittances come with their own set of considerations. Chief among them are regulation, infrastructure and usability.
The regulatory landscape supporting stablecoins continues to evolve and can vary widely by region. Some frameworks require stablecoins to be issued by local entities and backed by assets held with locally regulated institutions. But while these rules aim to protect consumers, they can introduce friction and limit the cross-border efficiency stablecoins are built to deliver.
The availability of viable on- and off-ramps so that users can easily and securely move stablecoins into and out of local currencies is also essential. Expanding access to compliant, user-friendly wallets and exchanges will be critical to unlocking global adoption, especially in underserved markets.
Wallet usability also matters. For stablecoin remittances to truly scale, the user experience must be intuitive and accessible, regardless of a person’s financial literacy or tech background. Just like smartphones made the internet more usable, wallets must make digital money more approachable
And finally, trust is everything. Regulated, reputable issuers like Ripple help ensure that stability, redemption and compliance are baked in from the start.
What the Future Holds for Stablecoin Remittances
Looking ahead, stablecoins are poised to play a much bigger role in the global payments ecosystem. Expect to see tighter integration with existing financial infrastructure, with stablecoins acting as a bridge between traditional fiat systems and blockchain-based value exchange. That means more seamless payments, more efficient currency conversions and more accessible corridors for remittance flows, especially in regions that remain underserved by legacy banking systems.
Ripple is also helping push stablecoin use mainstream for a wider range of applications. In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the company recently announced a $25 million philanthropic commitment using RLUSD to fund leading education nonprofits. By leveraging blockchain-based stablecoin payments, Ripple is helping those organizations disburse funds in real time, directly to recipients, while cutting down on administrative friction—a model that could easily scale across other aid or payroll use cases in the future.
Ultimately, the promise of stablecoin remittances goes beyond speed and cost savings. It's about creating a smarter, more inclusive global payment system—one in which families, not just financial institutions, can move money with ease.
The Bottom Line
For too long, sending money across borders has been more expensive and more complicated than it needs to be, especially for the people who can least afford it. Stablecoins are changing that. By combining the reliability of fiat currency with the efficiency of blockchain, stablecoins offer a faster, cheaper and more transparent alternative to traditional remittance channels. They eliminate unnecessary intermediaries, reduce fees and enable near-instant settlement, even outside of banking hours.
That’s not just a technical upgrade. It’s a meaningful shift for the hundreds of millions of people who rely on remittances to support their families, invest in their communities and build better futures.
Want to learn more about stablecoin remittances and how Ripple is helping power the future of global payments? Explore RLUSD and XRPL.
