PayPal Brings Its Stablecoin to Stellar for Cross-Border Remittances, Payments Financing

PayPal (PYPL) is bringing its PYUSD stablecoin to the Stellar blockchain network to strengthen the dollar-pegged token's position in cross-border remittances and payment financing, the companies said on Wednesday.

PYUSD, which already operates on Ethereum and Solana, will expand to Stellar to explore new areas like payment financing, or "PayFi". This allows small and medium-sized businesses that face delayed receivables or pre-funding requirements to access new sources of real-time working capital, disbursed in PYUSD, according to a press release.

That capital can be used to pay suppliers, manage inventory or address other operational needs with instant settlement on Stellar, the companies said.

Stablecoins, digital tokens whose value is pegged to a real-world asset, rose to popularity as a way to trade in and out of cryptocurrencies without having to convert to fiat cash. More recently, much of the action has been on the rapid growth of cross border remittances and other innovations within the payments arena.

"For years, stablecoins have been deemed crypto’s ‘killer app’ by combining the power of the blockchain with the stability of fiat currency. As we see cross border payments being a key area where digital currencies can provide real world value, working with Stellar will help advance the use of this technology and provide benefits for all users," said May Zabaneh, PayPal's vice president for blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital currencies.

The partnership announcement has been approved by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), which requires a final review of the product integration before going live, Stellar said via email.