a16z: Stablecoins are reshaping the global financial infrastructure, and a new wave of on-chain finance is accelerating.

Deep Tide TechFlow News, April 27 — A research report released by a16z crypto says that stablecoins have evolved from niche trading tools into the core layer of new global financial infrastructure, fueling the emergence of a new “Banking-as-a-Service” (BaaS) model. Unlike the previous BaaS wave, this new model is built on on-chain infrastructure, integrating account, payments, foreign exchange, and credit functions through self-custodied wallets, significantly reducing reliance on traditional intermediaries.

The report categorizes blockchains into three types: general-purpose public chains represented by Solana and Ethereum; dedicated chains optimized for payment scenarios (such as Stripe’s Tempo and Circle’s Arc); and compliant networks for regulated institutions (such as Canton). On the regulatory front, after the passage of the GENIUS Act, stablecoin issuers are vying for OCC national trust charters, aiming in the future to connect directly to the Federal Reserve payment track and seize a core position in the payments hierarchy.

The report also notes that stablecoins have made significant progress in the “intermediary” stage of cross-border payments, but liquidity bottlenecks between stablecoins and local fiat currencies remain unresolved in emerging markets. Over the long term, as stablecoin scale expands, on-chain credit markets are expected to become the next major opportunity after payments, providing capital support for borrowers not covered by traditional financial systems. In addition, the widespread adoption of stablecoins will further strengthen the US dollar’s global dominance.