Stablecoins Handled $35 Trillion Last Year—So Why Did Only 1% Go to Actual Payments?

Recent research from McKinsey and Artemis Analytics reveals a striking paradox in the stablecoin ecosystem: while these digital tokens channeled an enormous $35 trillion in transactions last year, a surprisingly small fraction—just 1%—represented genuine payment activity. The analysis highlights a fundamental disconnect between headline figures and real-world stablecoin adoption.

The Real Numbers Behind the Headlines

According to the McKinsey and Artemis Analytics joint study, true stablecoin payments—including vendor settlements, employee compensation, remittances, and automated fund transfers—totaled approximately $380 to $390 billion annually. This represents a negligible 0.02% of the global payments market, which exceeds $2 quadrillion yearly.

The distinction matters because most stablecoin volume stems from cryptocurrency trading, system-level functions, and internal ledger transfers that never reach end users. These mechanisms artificially inflate transaction counts while obscuring the sector’s actual utility in practical payment scenarios.

Where Stablecoins Actually Function as Payment Tools

The research identified three concrete applications where stablecoins operate as legitimate payment infrastructure:

Business-to-Business Transactions: The largest segment, accounting for $226 billion in annual activity. Companies increasingly leverage stablecoins to streamline cross-border vendor payments and reduce settlement friction.

Global Payroll and Remittances: Worth approximately $90 billion yearly, this category encompasses salary disbursements and international money transfers—areas where stablecoins genuinely address friction in traditional systems.

Capital Markets Settlements: Though modest at $8 billion, this emerging use case demonstrates stablecoins’ growing role in automating fund transfers and settlement procedures in financial infrastructure.

Why Traditional Payment Giants Are Still Moving In

Despite these numbers appearing modest, companies like Visa, Stripe, Circle, and Tether continue expanding their stablecoin initiatives. Their strategic positioning reflects confidence in long-term growth potential rather than current market realities. The competition to build dominant stablecoin payment networks intensifies even as participants acknowledge that true adoption remains in early stages.

Beyond Today’s Numbers: The Actual Potential

McKinsey and Artemis analysts emphasize that modest current payment volumes don’t diminish stablecoins’ long-term promise. Instead, this data establishes a realistic baseline for evaluating market progress and identifying what genuine scaling will require.

The gap between $35 trillion in total volume and $380 billion in real payments clarifies where the market currently stands. For stablecoins to fulfill their role as faster, cheaper payment infrastructure, adoption must expand significantly beyond today’s concentrated use cases. The infrastructure and technology exist; what remains is demonstrated demand from mainstream users and merchants willing to embrace this payment mechanism at scale.