FEAR & GREED | Business News Q+A: Why stablecoins may be the future of payments
Aug 27, 2025
Karl Durrance, Managing Director at Stripe for Australia and New Zealand, dives into the world of stablecoins, exploring their game-changing potential for payments. He elaborates on how these digital currencies, pegged to stable assets, can enhance transaction efficiency and reduce volatility. Durrance discusses their growing adoption by Australian businesses, like Shopify's integration with Stripe, and highlights the rising confidence in technology to drive productivity, all while setting the stage for the upcoming Stripe Tour in Sydney.
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Stripe's Founding Story
- Stripe was born because the founders struggled to accept payments for their prior startup.
- That early pain drove them to build infrastructure for others to accept payments easily.
Why Stablecoins Make Crypto Useful For Payments
- Stablecoins solve crypto's three payment problems: volatility, slow settlement, and high fees.
- They are pegged to fiat, settle in milliseconds, and offer competitive costs for payments.
CBDCs Versus Stablecoins
- Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) differ from stablecoins because CBDCs are issued by central banks while stablecoins are commercial.
- Both use ledger tech, but stablecoins target retail internet payments and new use cases.