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In focus
- Stablecoins are upgrading the world’s financial plumbing
- Coming soon: websites for AI agents
- Animoca Brands’ crypto conviction leads to the Nasdaq
Hello reader,
Just a few years ago, blockchain companies were fighting to gain legitimacy in the financial space. When I was still trading crypto, the token I held for the longest was Ripple’s XRP, which is used as an intermediary currency for cross-border transactions.
I remember that in 2021, it was a big deal that Ripple was partnering with companies like the Philippines’ Coins.ph and Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank, pushing up the token’s value.
Now, many financial institutions are embracing blockchain, with stablecoins a key part of adoption as it lets banks settle payments quickly and more affordably.
As Ben Charoenwong, an associate professor at Insead, points out in today’s first Top Story, traditional wires take two to five days and cost up to US$50. Stablecoins allow for payment settlements in minutes for under a dollar.
One major factor in the tech’s legitimacy is regulation.
In Singapore, StraitsX’s XSGD is regulated by the country’s central bank. Just yesterday, Grab allowed its users to hold and transact on its platform using the stablecoin through a partnership with StraitsX.
This growing legitimacy gives giants like Standard Chartered the confidence to explore tokenization and stablecoin payments. As more industry majors adopt stablecoins, Charoenwong predicts the tokens will be a “modernizing force” that can uproot traditional payment rails.
Another breakthrough tech that’s seeing mass adoption is AI agents. Amit Verma, founding head of engineering and AI at Neuron7.ai and the writer of our other Top Story, sees websites adapting to make browsing easier for these agents.
In a sense, AI agents are becoming a modernizing force for web browsing.
Miguel Cordon, journalist
Top Stories
1️⃣ Stablecoins quietly shaking Asia’s financial foundations
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