Axios Live: Stablecoins aren't a silver bullet for global payment issues, industry leaders say

LAS VEGAS — Stablecoins are an exciting stride for global payment systems, but are not an immediate solution for speed and efficiency problems for financial institutions and governments, several industry leaders said at an Axios Live roundtable this week.

• Axios' Dan Primack and Ryan Lawler moderated the Oct. 27 roundtable discussion, sponsored by HSBC.

Why it matters: Innovations like stablecoins and real-time payments are transforming how money moves worldwide, and banks, regulators and consumers are trying to adapt while deciding which advancements have staying power.

5 big things: Here's what the attendees had to say …

1. Stablecoins may be a solution to the problems plaguing money movement, but not yet, Thunes president and COO Chloé Mayenobe said.

• "It solves a huge problem, which is 24/7, and that is probably the most problematic thing that we have to solve when we do cross-border payments," Mayenobe said. "So this is an answer, but still the usage … and so on needs to be overcome."

2. Stablecoins are the "Blu-ray disc of monetary evolution," Galoy chief strategy officer Andrew Begin said, comparing them to what was seen as trailblazing movie-playing technology.

• "I think it's a small step. It's improving on this current system that we have today … but I believe that there's a bigger change coming."
• "To me, this is a 20-year time horizon, not a two- to five-year time horizon. I think that stablecoins are, you know, 'the thing' right now."

3. The user's experience should be at the center of efforts to improve efficiency, cost and speed of payments, PagBrasil CEO Ralf Germer said.

• Solutions will vary by country, he said, while citing Brazil's government-backed Pix payments system as a success.
• "It gives this experience of sending money for free, instantly, in two, three seconds, any amount, there's no limitation, but it only works within Brazil."

4. "There's a lot of really interesting applications to this but … I don't know if they've found that killer United States use case" for instant payment systems like FedNow, Spade CEO Oban MacTavish said.

5. Stablecoins are exciting, but it's questionable as to whether they are a big leap for real-time payments, Tunic Pay co-founder and CEO Nicky Goulimis said. "The problem is, how do we make money move faster and more efficiently?"

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HSBC global head of global payment solutions and innovation banking Will Turner explained how rapidly changing payment methods and technology are reshaping the banking and financial services industry.

• "Over the last two days, we've heard just how fast things are moving in our industry — from stablecoins, real-time cross-border payments, artificial intelligence and data-driven insights," Turner said. "And they're not just nice to have in our industry and for HSBC, they're a real business imperative to us, and the way money moves and how businesses manage risk, liquidity [and] growth are being rewritten in real time."