Opportunity and Need

The payments industry is broken. In 2024, U.S. merchants paid a record $148.5 billion in credit card processing fees, with the average family paying close to $1,200 annually in hidden swipe fees passed on through higher prices. Credit card companies charge merchants between 1.7% to 3.5% per transaction, with American Express often exceeding 4%. International payments are even worse, with foreign transaction fees averaging 3% plus currency conversion margins of 3-5%. Wire transfers, the backbone of B2B payments, cost $15-45 per transaction and take days to settle.

Meanwhile, the stablecoin market crossed $200 billion in December 2024 and is projected to reach $400 billion by the end of 2025. In 2024 alone, stablecoins processed $27.6 trillion in transfer volume, surpassing Visa and Mastercard's combined transaction volume by 7.68%. This isn't speculative crypto hype. This is real utility. Companies like Stripe, which acquired Bridge for $1.1 billion, and Revolut are already using USDC to eliminate foreign exchange fees that typically cost businesses $10,000-30,000 on every million dollars transferred internationally.

The opportunity is particularly compelling on Base, Coinbase's Layer 2 blockchain. Base has experienced explosive growth with active users increasing 1,280% year-over-year to 1.26 million, while processing nearly 10 million transactions annually. The network's TVL has surged to over $4 billion, with USDC transactions on Base exceeding $20 billion. By leveraging Coinbase's 120 million monthly users and 8.7 million transacting users, Base provides the perfect infrastructure for mainstream payment adoption.

Regional dynamics amplify this opportunity. In emerging markets, stablecoins already account for 50% of global transaction volume. In Argentina, where inflation hit 143% in 2024, businesses and consumers have turned to USDC as a stable store of value and medium of exchange. Corporate use of stablecoins grew 25% in 2024, primarily for cross-border payments and supply chain settlements where traditional banking fails to deliver speed and cost efficiency.

The convergence is clear. Traditional payment rails built decades ago cannot serve a global, always-on digital economy. Stablecoins on efficient blockchains like Base solve every major pain point: instant settlement instead of days, fees measured in cents not percentages, global reach without intermediaries, and no chargebacks or reversals. The infrastructure is ready. The adoption is accelerating. What's missing is the bridge to make this technology accessible to every business. That's the opportunity OnlyStables Pay captures.