“Lack of faith in local economic policies, it's political instability, it's depreciating currency, it's runaway inflation. So it's all these economic factors that play into a person not willing to hold their local currency and would much rather hold this digital dollar.” - Chris Harmse 

Two-thirds (⅔) of every crypto transaction is conducted using stablecoins and there is no doubt the future of digital dollars is happening today.

In this episode, Ian Andrews (CMO, Chainalysis) speaks with Chris Harmse, the Co-founder and Chief Business Officer of BVNK, whose company just released an industry leading report, The Decade of Digital Dollars. 

Chris shares insights on the rapid developments in cryptocurrency, the stablecoin market, and how BVNK is facilitating smoother transactions across traditional and digital financial systems, while acknowledging the regulatory challenges and the ongoing wars between Layer 1 and Layer 2 blockchains.

He discusses the evolution of financial systems in South Africa, LATAM and other emerging markets, where stablecoins meet the demand for accessible cross-border payments and solve for the instability of local currencies.  

Minute-by-minute episode breakdown

2 | How Chris got into crypto working at an FX desk in an investment firm 

4 | BVNK's Journey from South African crypto pioneers to global innovators

7 | Bridging traditional and blockchain payments with stablecoin solutions integrating with SWIFT

9 | Introduction of PayPal’s stablecoin, PYUSD into the BVNK stablecoin infrastructure

11 | Stablecoin listing process and Solana leading Layer 1 payments race

13 | MiCA regulations and stablecoin opportunities in Europe

16 | Key findings from the BVNK’s Stablecoin Report on the Decade of Digital Dollars

18 | The cost of holding a local fiat currency that is losing value over time 

22 | Case Study: Visa's blockchain integration for faster stablecoin settlements

25 | The rise of non-USD stablecoins in global trade and CBDC popularity

28 | The future of payments: Blockchain, stablecoins, and global expansion

Related resources

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Website: BVNK: Accelerating global money movement
• Report: The decade of digital dollars: Unlocking economic efficiency with stablecoins
• Press Release: We’re partnering with Circle to streamline global business payments
• Video: Currency LDN 2024: Bridging the compliance gap
• Customer Story: Calgary Police Service pioneers innovation to keep citizens safe in a digital world
• Reports: The 2024 Geography of Crypto Report (Download now!)
• Reports: The 2024 Crypto Maturity Journey: How Traditional Finance Can Adopt Cryptocurrency in Stages (Just Released - Download now!)
• YouTube: Chainalysis YouTube page
• Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchain

Speakers on today’s episode

• Ian Andrews *Host* (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 
• Chris Harmse (Co-founder, Chief Business Officer, BVNK) 

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