Major retailers are orchestrating what could be the most significant disruption to payment processing since the advent of credit cards, with Amazon, Walmart, and Expedia leading a charge to deploy stablecoins that promise to slash the billions they currently hemorrhage to traditional payment networks.
The mathematics are compelling enough to make even the most conservative CFO reconsider their allegiance to Visa and Mastercard.
While traditional card payments lumber through multi-day settlement processes—a relic that would seem antiquated in any other industry—stablecoins offer near-instantaneous transactions with fees that make interchange rates look positively medieval.
The glacial pace of traditional payments makes stablecoins’ lightning-speed settlements look like financial time travel.
Amazon’s early-stage exploration of stablecoins for online purchases signals a seismic shift, particularly when one considers the company’s transaction volume could single-handedly justify the infrastructure investment.
Walmart’s consideration of branded stablecoins represents perhaps the most audacious move, transforming what has traditionally been a cost center into a potential profit engine.
The retailer could theoretically capture interest on reserve assets backing their digital currency while simultaneously reducing transaction costs—a double arbitrage that would make traditional payment processors distinctly uncomfortable. Tether’s remarkable achievement of generating over a billion dollars in operating profit during Q1 2025 demonstrates the lucrative potential that retailers are now eyeing for their own stablecoin ventures.
The regulatory landscape, however, remains the critical variable in this equation.
The GENIUS Act, scheduled for a Senate vote on June 17, could provide the regulatory clarity that transforms these initiatives from corporate pipe dreams into operational reality.
Without this framework, even the most compelling economic arguments remain theoretical exercises.
JPMorgan’s consideration of a joint stablecoin initiative with other major banks suggests the financial services sector recognizes the existential threat these developments pose to their payment processing revenue streams.
The irony is palpable: banks potentially accelerating their own disruption by legitimizing the very technology that could marginalize their role as payment intermediaries. Unlike popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, stablecoins are specifically designed to minimize the volatility that has historically hindered digital currency adoption in mainstream commerce.
Airlines and additional retail consortiums are reportedly monitoring these developments, creating the possibility of a cascade effect that could fundamentally restructure payment processing economics. Meta’s partnership with stablecoin companies for cross-border payments demonstrates how tech giants are positioning themselves to capture international transaction flows.
The competitive advantage gained by early adopters could prove insurmountable, particularly if regulatory approval creates clear winners and losers in the race to deploy stablecoin infrastructure.
For card networks accustomed to extracting billions in interchange fees, the prospect of retailers bypassing their rails entirely represents an unprecedented challenge to decades of entrenched profitability.
