Best Utility Tokens To Buy As Digital Payments Powered by Stablecoins Continue to Advance

The digital payments world is witnessing remarkable transformation as stablecoins continue their explosive growth trajectory. Circle, the company behind the popular USDC coin, has recently announced its coming IPO, tentatively slated for the end of April. Meanwhile, MoonPay and Stripe, two giants in the digital payments space, have made strategic acquisitions.

How Stablecoins are Evolving

According to recent industry data, stablecoins facilitated an estimated $27 trillion in transfers during 2024 alone, demonstrating their growing importance in global financial infrastructure. Monthly transfer volumes more than doubled year-over-year, reaching an impressive $6.1 trillion by February 2025.

This surge isn’t just about volume—the supply of stablecoins has expanded dramatically, growing from $138 billion to $225 billion over the past year, representing a 63% year-over-year increase. With over $230 billion in circulation, stablecoins have firmly established themselves as one of blockchain technology’s most practical applications.

The rise of stablecoins is particularly noteworthy when compared to traditional payment networks. While PayPal processed approximately $1.5 trillion in 2023 and Mastercard handled around $9 trillion, stablecoin payments settled $2.5 trillion in just 12 months leading to May 2024—an impressive tenfold increase since June 2020.

User adoption reflects this growth trend as well. The number of active stablecoin addresses has increased 15-fold from July 2020 to May 2024, with an average of 220,000 new addresses joining monthly during this period.

Circle’s Road to the NYSE

Circle, the company behind the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin, has filed for a $5 billion IPO on the New York Stock Exchange. This isn’t just another tech listing—it’s a watershed moment for digital assets, blending blockchain innovation with old-school Wall Street rigor.

Circle’s journey to the public markets reads like a crypto industry highlight reel. After a failed 2022 SPAC merger derailed by regulatory headaches and the FTX collapse, many wrote off the company. Then came 2023’s banking crisis, where $3.3 billion of Circle’s reserves got temporarily stuck in Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. USDC briefly lost its dollar peg, sparking panic across DeFi protocols.

But here’s the twist: Circle didn’t just survive—it thrived. By 2024, USDC’s circulation ballooned 78% year-over-year to $60 billion, processing $1 trillion in monthly transactions. This resilience caught Wall Street’s eye, with JPMorgan and Citi stepping up to underwrite the IPO. “It’s a validation story,” says a fintech analyst. “They’ve shown stablecoins aren’t just crypto toys—they’re becoming financial infrastructure”.

The Numbers Behind the Hype: Revenue vs. Reality

If we cut through the buzz with hard data, Circle’s 2024 financials reveal:

  • $1.68 billion revenue: Up 16% from 2023, driven by interest from USDC’s Treasury-backed reserves
  • $156 million net profit: A 42% drop from 2023, reflecting heavy spends on compliance and product development
  • $20 trillion lifetime transaction volume: Cementing USDC as the plumbing for crypto’s global money movement

The revenue model’s simplicity is its strength—and vulnerability. Nearly all income comes from parking USDC reserves in short-term Treasuries. When the Fed hiked rates to 5.25%, this became a cash cow. But an ECB study warns: every 1% rate cut could slash stablecoin market caps by 10% as investors chase yield elsewhere. Circle’s challenge? Diversify before the next rate cycle turns.

USDC vs. The World: How Transparency Became a Competitive Edge

In the stablecoin arena, Tether’s USDT still rules with $110 billion in circulation. But USDC is carving its niche as the “clean crypto” alternative:

  • 100% cash/Treasury backing: Verified by weekly attestations (soon daily) from Grant Thornton
  • First MiCA-compliant stablecoin: Meeting strict EU standards ahead of 2025 regulations
  • Institutional adoption: 80% of USDC transactions now involve regulated entities, per Circle’s filings

This compliance focus is paying off. When Ripple’s XRP and Binance’s BUSD faced SEC heat, institutions flocked to USDC. “It’s become the SWIFT of crypto,” notes a payments exec. “You use USDC when you can’t afford settlement risk”.

The Banking Paradox: How Circle Won Over Its Former Skeptics

Ironically, Circle’s biggest allies now are the banks that once shunned crypto. JPMorgan isn’t just underwriting the IPO—it’s using USDC for cross-border settlements. Citi recently integrated USDC into its treasury management tools. Even the ECB acknowledges stablecoins’ growing systemic role, despite labeling them “not safe havens”.

This détente stems from pragmatism. Traditional finance spends $120 billion annually on cross-border fees. USDC transactions settle in seconds for pennies. “Banks hate crypto’s volatility but love its efficiency,” explains a Citi strategist. “Stablecoins offer the perfect bridge”.

The Regulatory Tightrope: How Circle is Shaping Policy

Going public forces Circle into a new role: policy influencer. The company’s S-1 filing reveals intense lobbying on three fronts:

  1. Stablecoin legislation: Pushing for a federal framework that favors USDC’s reserve model over algorithmic rivals
  2. DeFi regulation: Advocating for “travel rule” exemptions for non-custodial wallets
  3. CBDC integration: Positioning USDC as a complement to, not competitor of, digital dollars

This comes as lawmakers draft bills like the SAFE Bet Act, which could mandate bank-like oversight for stablecoin issuers. Circle’s response? Preempt regulation through transparency—hence those weekly reserve reports.

A Flurry of Acquisitions: MoonPay and Stripe

Another major player in the stablecoin and digital payments arena, MoonPay, has established itself as a leader in crypto accessibility by enabling users to onboard through familiar payment methods including debit cards, bank accounts, PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. With over 30 million accounts across 180 countries, the company has demonstrated its ability to bridge traditional finance and cryptocurrency ecosystems.

Its recent acquisition of stablecoin infrastructure provider Iron marks a significant strategic maneuver in the increasingly competitive crypto payments landscape. This move positions the company to directly challenge payment processing giants like Stripe, while accelerating the adoption of blockchain-based payment solutions across the enterprise sector.

The acquisition of Iron represents MoonPay’s second major purchase in just two months, following its $175 million deal to acquire Helio, a Solana-based blockchain payment processor, in January 2025. This aggressive expansion strategy mirrors Stripe’s unprecedented $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge Network—currently the largest transaction in crypto history.

Ivan Soto-Wright, MoonPay’s Co-Founder and CEO, frames the company’s vision succinctly: “We think everyone is going to have a digital currency wallet, whether it’s inside of a bank account or independently. And we build a backwards compatibility to the existing financial system.”

The Stripe-Bridge Connection: Setting a New Precedent

MoonPay’s strategic moves follow closely behind Stripe’s completion of its $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge Network in February 2025. This deal, first announced in October 2024, marked Stripe’s largest purchase to date and set a new valuation benchmark for crypto infrastructure companies.

Bridge Network, founded in 2022, enables businesses to accept stablecoin payments without directly handling digital tokens. The company experienced exponential growth, with business increasing tenfold in 2024. Its impressive client roster includes cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, aerospace manufacturer SpaceX, and several government entities.

The acquisition represented a significant return to the crypto space for Stripe, which had previously supported bitcoin payments in 2014 but withdrew from cryptocurrency services in 2018 due to scalability issues and high fees. Bridge’s founder Zach Abrams noted that before acquisition talks began, they had actually been courting Stripe as a potential customer.

“It was shocking to me,” Abrams recalled about a Treasury roundtable meeting at Stripe’s headquarters that brought him together with Stripe’s Patrick Collison. “We spent 90-plus percent of the meeting talking about stablecoins—even though we were the only stablecoin company in the room.”

Tether Investment in Mansa for Cross-Border Transfers

Meanwhile, Dubai-based fintech startup Mansa is making waves with its innovative approach to liquidity challenges in cross-border transactions. By leveraging stablecoins, Mansa is not only addressing inefficiencies in traditional payment systems but also positioning itself as a key player in emerging markets. With $10 million in seed funding secured, including a $3 million equity investment led by Tether, the company is poised for expansion into Latin America and Southeast Asia.

Cross-border payments are the lifeblood of global commerce, but they often face significant hurdles, particularly in emerging markets. Liquidity shortages can lead to delayed settlements and higher operational costs, with remittance fees averaging 6.5% globally—an issue that disproportionately affects developing regions. Mansa’s solution? A revolving line of credit in stablecoins that enables payment providers to settle transactions and fund customer accounts instantly.

The startup’s model improves cash flow for clients while reducing costs compared to fiat alternatives. Instead of relying on collateral-based lending, Mansa underwrites loans using transaction data, offering flexibility and efficiency. This approach is particularly relevant in import-heavy economies where access to fiat U.S. dollars is limited due to currency restrictions and capital controls. Stablecoins provide a viable alternative by enabling businesses to transact seamlessly across borders without the inefficiencies of traditional systems.

A Remarkable Growth

Since its launch in August 2024, Mansa has processed over $27 million in transaction volume on-chain, achieving a monthly growth rate of 37.5%. The company’s clients—ranging from B2B payment platforms to forex providers—have reported a 30% increase in transaction volumes and a 10% boost in revenue since onboarding. With cross-border payments projected to reach $290.2 trillion annually by 2030, Mansa’s model stands to significantly reduce operational costs and remittance fees in emerging markets.

The $10 million funding round will support the company’s expansion into Latin America and Southeast Asia—regions grappling with similar liquidity constraints as Africa. By bringing payments on-chain and leveraging efficient liquidity solutions, Mansa aims to make transactions faster, cheaper, and more reliable worldwide.

Technological Transformation in Financial Services

Soto-Wright compares the evolution of stablecoin technology to the transformation seen in telecommunications: “It was really expensive to place a long distance phone call, and then you had Skype, then you had Zoom, you had all this internet-based technology for doing communication—same thing will take place for money, and that’s essentially the blockchain.”

This comparison highlights how fundamentally blockchain technology is reshaping our concept of value transfer. Standard Chartered has predicted that stablecoins could grow to represent approximately 10% of foreign exchange transactions, a significant jump from the current 1%. This potential for tenfold growth explains the aggressive positioning by companies like MoonPay and Stripe.

Stablecoins are increasingly being explored by payment companies for their potential to revolutionize cross-border transactions through real-time settlement and reduced costs. In 2024 alone, the annualized transaction value of stablecoins surpassed $15.6 trillion—119% that of Visa and 200% of Mastercard—according to ARK Invest’s report on digital assets. This rapid adoption underscores their utility as a cheaper and faster alternative to traditional bank transfers, especially for remittances where fees can average over 7%.

SUBBD, an AI Utility Token Platform for Content Creation,  Surpasses $100K After Presale Launch

In addition to stablecoins, AI is another revolutionary technology that is taking the world by storm right now. SUBBD, an innovative AI-driven content creation platform, is making a significant impact on the $85 billion creator-subscriber market with the launch of its $SUBBD token. 

Within minutes of its presale launch, the project raised over $100,000 and is now targeting its first milestone of $220,398. Positioned as the first AI-integrated crypto creator and subscription platform, SUBBD aims to address key challenges faced by creators and fans alike. By streamlining workflows and eliminating intermediaries, it allows creators to focus on their craft while fostering closer connections with their audiences.

The $SUBBD token is currently available at a presale price of $0.055075, but this rate will increase in less than two days, creating urgency for early investors. The platform boasts a strong foundation with a network of 250 million influencers and ambassadors, including prominent figures like Vi (258k followers), Niusia (384k), and Diana (729k). 

Leveraging AI Tools to Enhance Content Creation and Monetization 

SUBBD transforms traditional static subscriptions into dynamic and rewarding digital experiences, offering a sound use case and a robust business model.

SUBBD leverages advanced AI tools to enhance content creation and monetization while addressing inefficiencies in the current system. Creators often lose up to 70% of their earnings to third-party managers, but SUBBD’s decentralized model ensures they retain more revenue. Additionally, the platform empowers users by providing tools for managing subscriptions and monetization without dependence on centralized platforms that may impose arbitrary rules or de-platform creators. Fans gain access to exclusive content while enjoying enhanced engagement through token-gated experiences.

Integration of Web3 Technologies

The platform’s integration of Web3 technologies further strengthens its appeal. Blockchain ensures frictionless, borderless financial transactions while enabling loyalty rewards such as token airdrops. SUBBD has allocated 10% of its total supply of 1 billion tokens for airdrops, alongside allocations for community rewards (70 million tokens), creator rewards (50 million tokens), and staking incentives (50 million tokens). Investors can stake their purchased tokens today to earn an annual reward of 20%, making it an attractive option for both creators and fans, and those hunting the best utility tokens to buy.

SUBBD’s AI capabilities extend beyond content generation to include video editing, research assistance, and subscriber management—services that are increasingly in demand. By addressing these needs, SUBBD positions itself as a comprehensive solution for creators seeking to maximize efficiency and revenue. The platform also fosters community-driven governance through its decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), allowing users to participate in shaping its future.

How to Purchase SUBBD Tokens

Purchasing $SUBBD tokens is simple; they can be bought using ETH, BNB, USDT, or even bank cards. Once acquired, tokens can be staked immediately for additional rewards. With its unique combination of AI innovation and Web3 decentralization, SUBBD is poised to redefine the creator economy by offering unparalleled opportunities for creators and fans alike.

As one of the most promising utility token presales of the year, SUBBD presents a rare opportunity for early adopters to be part of a groundbreaking movement in content creation and monetization.

Visit SUBBD 

Source: https://en.cryptonomist.ch/2025/04/07/best-utility-tokens-to-buy-as-digital-payments-powered-by-stablecoins-continue-to-advance/