Stablecoin payment volume rises to $390 billion: report

Stablecoin payments volume reached $390 billion annually based on December 2025 data, more than doubling 2024 levels, with Asia accounting for 60% of the total, according to a new report from business management consultant firm McKinsey & Company.

The report, published February 18 and based on data from blockchain analytics firm Artemis Analytics, indicated that at current usage rates, the volume of stablecoin payments made annually is about $390 billion, representing roughly 0.02% of global payment volumes.

Of this amount, Asia accounted for the largest share of stablecoin payment volumes, totaling $245 billion, or 60% of the total. This activity was “driven almost entirely” by payments from Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan, said McKinsey.

The report demonstrates how the global stablecoin market has skyrocketed in recent years, with circulating supply now exceeding $390 billion, up from less than $30 billion in 2020. Future predictions are even more striking; United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent predicted last November that stablecoin supply could reach $3 trillion by 2030, while multinational investment bank and financial services company Citi forecast that stablecoins could reach $4 trillion by the end of 2030 in its bull-case scenario.

Beyond providing more evidence of this accelerating upward trend, McKinsey’s analysis yielded three notable observations about the stablecoin market.

Three key trends

First, stablecoins are gaining traction where they offer advantages in specific use cases, including settlement, improved liquidity management, and reduced friction.

For example, the report highlighted how stablecoin-linked cards are expanding practical usability by enabling holders to spend stablecoins directly with merchants globally, without first converting funds through exchanges or banks. As a result, McKinsey estimated that stablecoin-linked card spending had grown to $4.5 billion in 2025, up 673% from 2024.

This is a stark change from the early days of digital assets and cryptocurrency, which were dominated by small, low-value payments between individuals. Further evidence, if it was needed, that the digital asset space, and stablecoins in particular, have become far more mainstream and legitimate in recent years.

Finally, the report’s third notable observation concerns where— geographically—much of this stablecoin activity is occurring: namely, in Asia.

Based on the data, stablecoin payments sent from Asia account for the largest share of volume, totaling about $245 billion, or 60% of the total. Meanwhile, North America accounted for $95 billion, Europe $50 billion, and Latin America and Africa each accounted for less than $1 billion.

Need for regulatory support

Taken together, McKinsey said the three notable trends suggest adoption of stablecoins is taking hold in a limited number of proven use cases, with broader scale dependent on how successfully these can be expanded and replicated elsewhere.

Summing this up, the report said that “stablecoins have the potential to meaningfully reshape payments.” However, it argued that if that potential is to be realized, sustained effort across technology, regulation, and market adoption is needed.

From a business perspective, McKinsey suggested that stablecoin adoption at scale will require “clearer data, disciplined investment, and the ability to distinguish signal from noise in reported activity.”

In this regard, it concluded by saying: “Financial institutions that pair ambition with a realistic understanding of today’s volumes, while building toward tomorrow’s opportunities, will be best positioned to shape the next phase of stablecoin adoption.”

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