 
 
Solana Labs co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko believes stablecoins will form the backbone of the next major wave of blockchain adoption, driving trillions of dollars in on-chain activity across global markets.
In a wide-ranging interview, Yakovenko reflected on Solana’s journey from its early fundraising struggles to becoming one of the world’s largest layer-1 blockchains. He argued that while the regulatory environment in the United States has pushed many crypto startups offshore, the innovation potential of stablecoins remains too big to ignore.
For Yakovenko, stablecoins represent the most practical use case for blockchain technology today. That is, a frictionless bridge between traditional finance and decentralized systems.
“Crypto, to me, means cheaper, faster finance for consumers,” he said. “A lot of crypto is kind of the continuation of the growth of the internet and software, and this is specifically software eating the finance world.” He added.
Despite the regulatory headwinds, Yakovenko has remained committed to building in the U.S., calling it “the best place to start a company” thanks to its engineering talent and venture ecosystem. But he warned that excessive legal costs and uncertainty have driven smaller founders away.
 
Stablecoins and the Future of Blockchain Finance
Yakovenko sees stablecoins as the foundation of a new “internet capital market,” one that can rival traditional systems in speed, reliability, and scale.
The Solana co-founder envisions a global network where stablecoins enable seamless cross-border payments, decentralized finance (DeFi), and tokenized assets, all while maintaining the transparency and security of blockchain technology.
Reflecting on Solana’s resilience after the FTX collapse, Yakovenko praised developers who continued to build, citing their grit as a key reason the ecosystem recovered.
With Solana’s infrastructure now powering some of the fastest blockchain performance in the industry, Yakovenko believes stablecoins will soon unlock mainstream, trillion-dollar applications. “It’s just software eating the finance world,” he said. And stablecoins are the first real taste of it.