Crypto Cards Remain Strategic As Stablecoin Adoption Expands, Says New Artemis DeFi Study
Institutional-grade analytics supplier Artemis has launched a brand new report titled “Stablecoin Payments at Scale: How Cards Bridge Digital Assets and Global Commerce,” analyzing the shortly increasing position of cryptocurrency playing cards in digital funds. Cryptocurrency playing cards permit customers to spend stablecoins and different digital property at conventional retailers, rising as one of many fastest-growing segments within the funds sector.
The report notes that transaction quantity for cryptocurrency playing cards surged from roughly $100 million per thirty days in early 2023 to over $1.5 billion by late 2025, reflecting a 106% compound annual progress price. Annualized, this positions the market above $18 billion, approaching the size of peer-to-peer stablecoin transfers, which grew solely 5% over the identical interval to $19 billion.
Artemis highlights that cryptocurrency card infrastructure spans three layers: world cost networks reminiscent of Visa and Mastercard, card program managers and issuers, and the consumer-facing merchandise themselves. While Visa and Mastercard preserve near-equal program counts—every exceeding 130—Visa dominates greater than 90% of on-chain card transaction quantity by early partnerships with infrastructure suppliers.
The report emphasizes the rise of full-stack issuers, together with Rain and Reap, which mix program administration and card issuance by direct principal membership, bypassing conventional issuing banks and capturing better economics per transaction.
Geographically, the report identifies stablecoin card adoption the place digital property tackle sensible monetary wants. In India, with $338 billion in cryptocurrency inflows, the main target is on cryptocurrency-backed bank cards amid a commoditized debit ecosystem by way of UPI.
In Argentina, the place USDC represents 46.6% of stablecoins, stablecoin debit playing cards present a hedge towards inflation within the absence of different digital rails. In developed markets, the chance lies much less in fixing unmet wants and extra in serving a high-value person phase underserved by conventional monetary merchandise.
Crypto Cards Remain Key As Stablecoin Payments Expand, Bridging Digital Assets And Real-World Commerce
As stablecoin adoption accelerates, cost innovation is progressively shifting from card-based digital commerce towards direct stablecoin acceptance. Major networks together with Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, and Stripe are growing infrastructure that permits retailers to simply accept digital {dollars} natively, promising decrease charges and quicker settlement. However, this raises a important query: if retailers can settle for stablecoins straight, will cryptocurrency playing cards stay related?
Despite the potential of stablecoin-native funds, cryptocurrency playing cards proceed to carry strategic significance because of entrenched community results. Card networks and issuers function throughout greater than 150 million service provider areas globally, supported by a long time of funding in POS techniques, service provider agreements, regulatory approvals, and client belief. Establishing comparable stablecoin acceptance would require in depth {hardware} integration, service provider onboarding, treasury changes, and compliance measures, making a full transition a multi-year, presumably decade-long course of.
Beyond transaction routing, card networks present providers reminiscent of fraud safety, dispute decision, unsecured client credit score, rewards applications, and buy protections, options that stablecoin funds at present provide in restricted kind. Credit availability, specifically, stays a sturdy benefit for playing cards, supporting cash-flow administration and client adoption. Operational constraints additionally gradual service provider adoption of recent cost strategies, as POS techniques, accounting, and tax infrastructure are optimized for playing cards.
While stablecoin-based P2P and B2B funds are increasing in cross-border commerce, digital providers, and underserved markets, they’re unlikely to exchange card networks within the close to time period. Cards retain benefits for on a regular basis client spending, credit score and rewards, retailers hesitant to combine new techniques, regulated jurisdictions, and customers preferring abstracted interfaces. Stablecoins excel in high-value B2B funds, cross-border transactions, crypto-native commerce, and markets with out established card infrastructure.
Looking forward, stablecoin cost quantity is anticipated to develop alongside enhancing infrastructure and direct service provider acceptance. Cryptocurrency playing cards will proceed to scale in parallel, leveraging current service provider networks to bridge digital property into on a regular basis commerce and serving because the infrastructure for the subsequent part of stablecoin adoption.
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