The CEO and co-founder of Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, Jeremy Allaire expressed the view that the potential of stablecoins remains unrealized, and the market has not yet reached a level of popularity comparable to the revolution brought about by the iPhone in the world of mobile technology.
This is reported by Finway
Stablecoins: Anticipating Breakthroughs and Regulatory Challenges
In his comments, Allaire emphasized that stablecoins have the potential to become the most efficient form of digital money, but for this to happen, the industry needs what he calls an ‘iPhone moment’ — a widespread awareness of the advantages of the new technology among developers and consumers. According to him, programmable digital dollars have the potential to change the approach to financial transactions, just as programmable mobile devices transformed the technological landscape.
“The highest utility form of money ever created. But we have not yet reached the iPhone moment, when developers everywhere recognize the power and possibilities of programmable digital dollars on the internet as they once did with the potential of programmable mobile devices. Soon,” Allaire noted.
Allaire’s statement came against the backdrop of lively discussions in the U.S. cryptocurrency community regarding the future of stablecoins and the risks associated with political or commercial influence on the industry. Recently, the U.S. Senate supported the bill ‘Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins’ (GENIUS Act), which outlines the regulatory framework for stablecoins.
Market Participants’ Opinions: Competition, Risks, and Innovations
The discussion gained new momentum following comments from a user on X with the pseudonym Green Eyed Ghost, who warned about the risk of monopolization of the stablecoin industry under the influence of Donald Trump’s policies and called for amendments to legislation to prevent abuses and ensure competitiveness.
Meanwhile, investor from a16z crypto Sam Broner emphasized the advantage of stablecoins in their openness and support for competition in the financial market. According to him, thanks to stablecoins, anyone interested can create innovative fintech solutions with minimal costs, which contributes to better accessibility and quality of financial services.
Additionally, ReflectMoney founder Niko pointed out the paradigm shift in the banking sector, where effective deposit management no longer requires the involvement of hundreds or thousands of employees — technology allows for the automation of most processes through code.
Web3 project leader MoonwellDeFi and Mamo_agent LukeYoungblood.eth highlighted that it is more accurate to compare USDC with payment networks rather than just its direct competitors like USDT. He noted that USDC is a fully programmable form of money that can be issued and destroyed across more than 20 blockchain networks, and its value lies in the vast volume of payments and the ability for instant cross-border transactions.
It is worth noting that according to analytical reports, the number of stablecoin users has already exceeded 160 million. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessen predicts that the market capitalization of stablecoins could soon exceed $2 trillion.