In recent years, stablecoins have rapidly evolved into a core infrastructure for cross-
border corporate payments, offering speed, reduced costs, and on-chain transparency for real business flows.
Explosive Growth in B2B Stablecoin Payments
According to a survey by Artemis (in partnership with Castle Island Ventures and Dragonfly), business-to-business stablecoin payments jumped from under $100 million per month in early 2023 to over $3 billion per month by early 2025. These payments now annualize to roughly $36 billion, based on the report. Use cases include vendor payouts, collateral transfers, and cross-border settlement. (Artemis / The Block)
Real-World Adoption & Transaction Volume
In their “Stablecoin Payments from the Ground Up” report, Artemis and partners tracked $94.2 billion worth of stablecoin payments settled between January 2023 and February 2025. Within that sample, stablecoin payments were running at a $72.3 billion annualized rate as of February 2025. (Artemis report)
By type, B2B payments were the most active, followed by peer-to-peer, card-linked payments, B2C payouts, and prefunding flows. (Artemis report)
The same report shows that Tether (USDT) accounted for about 90% of the volume in sampled companies, and the preferred chains for settlement were Tron, followed by Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, and Polygon. (Artemis report)
Cross-Border Crypto Flows: Macro Trends
A working paper by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) analyzed cross- border flows of Bitcoin, Ether, and stablecoins across 184 countries (2017–mid- 2024). The authors estimate that cross-border crypto flows peaked around $2.6 trillion, with stablecoins making up nearly half of that peak. (BIS Working Paper)
The paper also finds that transactional motives (e.g., payments) are a strong driver for stablecoin flows, particularly where traditional remittance costs are high. (BIS Working Paper)
Why Corporates Are Adopting Stablecoins
- Speed & Efficiency: Payments settle much faster than in many traditional cross-border systems.
- Cost Reduction: By bypassing traditional intermediaries, stablecoin settlements can be significantly cheaper.
- Programmability & Automation: Corporates can embed stablecoin rails into treasury, vendor, or collateral workflows.
- On-Chain Transparency: Blockchain-based settlements improve auditability and reconciliation, enhancing compliance.