Stripe's Bridge sees stablecoin volume quadruple as utility insulates from 'crypto winter'

Finance Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Stripe's Bridge sees stablecoin volume quadruple as utility insulates from 'crypto winter' The payments giant says Bridge, its stablecoin arm, saw its transaction volume sky-rocket through last year as stablecoin adoption is decoupling from crypto cycles. By Krisztian Sandor | Edited by Sheldon Reback Feb 24, 2026, 4:43 p.m. Make us preferred on Google Stripe co-founders Patrick and John Collison (Stripe modified by CoinDesk) What to know : Stablecoin volume is decoupling from the crypto market cycles as real-world use expands, payments firm Stripe said in its annual letter. Bridge, the stablecoin platform acquired by Stripe, saw transaction volume more than quadruple in 2025, the letter said. Stablecoins, or digital versions of fiat money, are increasingly viewed as an alternative for cross-border payments with Facebook parent Meta said to be the latest to explore developing its own token. It may be "crypto winter," but it's a "stablecoin summer" as digital dollar adoption booms, payments giant Stripe said Tuesday in its annual letter . Bridge, the stablecoin orchestration platform Stripe acquired in 2024, saw transaction volume more than quadruple last year, according to the letter. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy . The firm also said it will "soon" launch the mainnet of Tempo, the payments-focused blockchain it is developing with crypto firm Paradigm and started testing in December. Stripe has increasingly focused on bringing crypto technology to its payment network, seeing stablecoins as an alternative for cross-border transfers and programmable payments. Stablecoins are a $300 billion class of cryptocurrencies tied to fiat money like the U.S. dollar that use blockchains for faster, cheaper settlement. Their utility has led to stablecoins decoupling from crypto market cycles, the payment firm wrote. While bitcoin fell 50% from its October peak, and lost 6% over 2025, stablecoin payment volume doubled to about $400 billion, with around 60% resulting from business-to-business transactions, it said, citing a recent report by McKinsey and Artemis. "Stablecoin payments are advancing quietly and inexorably as real-world uptake continues apace," the firm wrote in the letter. Highlighting the rising stablecoin demand, Meta (META), the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp plans to launch its own stablecoin later this year with an outside partner, CoinDesk reported on Tuesday. Stripe said businesses processed $1.9 trillion on its platform last year, up 34% from 2024. The company also announced a tender offer valuing it at $159 billion. Read more: Stripe's stablecoin firm Bridge wins initial approval of national bank trust charter Stripe Bridge Stablecoins Payment Systems More For You Kraken rolls out crypto-style, 24/7 perpetuals trading for tokenized U.S. stocks By Krisztian Sandor | Edited by Stephen Alpher 1 hour ago The crypto exchange is bringing U.S. stocks closer to the crypto world, letting users trade derivatives of tokenized stocks around-the-clock and with 20x leverage. What to know : Kraken claims to be the first to launch regulated perpetual futures for tokenized stocks Move extends crypto’s fast-growing and dominant derivatives model to traditional equities. The contracts trade 24/7 with up to 20x leverage, giving non-U.S. investors capital-efficient exposure, Kraken said. Read full story Latest Crypto News Kraken rolls out crypto-style, 24/7 perpetuals trading for tokenized U.S. stocks 1 hour ago Adam Back's BSTR moving forward with public listing plans, hopes for April approval 1 hour ago Wall Street’s big blockchain win: SEC gives WisdomTree the green light for instant, around-the-clock trading 1 hour ago Bitcoin’s U.S. demand signal turns negative for a record 40 days 2 hours ago Mark Zuckerberg's Meta is planning stablecoin comeback in the second half of this year 2 hours ago Binance brings back tokenized stocks trading with Ondo Finance deal 2 hours ago Top Stories 'If you’re not accumulating bitcoin at this stage, then when,' asks prominent analyst 2 hours ago Crypto markets bleed as bitcoin hovers above liquidation zone 5 hours ago Putting the treasury to work: The Ethereum Foundation just staked 70,000 ETH to fund its future 6 hours ago Jane Street faces claims of insider trading that sped up Terraform's 2022 collapse 11 hours ago Hong Kong's RedotPay said to plan blockbuster $1 billion IPO in New York: Bloomberg 7 hours ago Step Finance shuts operations after $27 million January hack 6 hours ago