Nearly Half of APAC Consumers Open to Stablecoins by 2031

A Major Shift in How Asia-Pacific Thinks About Money

Imagine sending money across borders as easily as sending a quick text message. That simple convenience is one of the main reasons digital currencies are gaining ground across Asia.

According to a major survey by global payments giant Visa, nearly half of consumers in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region are open to using stablecoins within the next five years.

Visa surveyed 14,250 people across the region to understand their payment habits. The study found that 46% of consumers plan to use fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies within five years. That is a substantial rise from the 16% who reported using them over the past 12 months.

Everyday Purchases and Cross-Border Transfers Lead Interest

People are starting to view stablecoins as practical everyday tools rather than technical assets for specialized traders.

• International Money Transfers: About 49% of surveyed consumers believe stablecoins will become a common way to move money across borders in the next five years.
• Daily Shopping: Interest is growing around using stablecoins for everyday retail purchases.
• Travel Payments: Consumers see stablecoins as an easy way to spend money abroad without relying on traditional foreign exchange desks.

The Knowledge Gap: Understanding Remains Low

Even though interest is climbing fast, actual understanding of how these tokens work is lagging behind.

Visa found that only 6% of respondents had an accurate understanding of how stablecoins function. In fact, 49% of people who knew about stablecoins mistakenly believed they could only be used to trade other cryptocurrencies.

Security also remains a major hurdle. Among people who knew about stablecoins but had not used them yet, fear of fraud and scams was listed as the top reason holding them back.

How Payment Companies Are Responding

With roughly 2.5 billion middle-class consumers in the APAC region, payment companies, banks, and card networks are working quickly to build user-friendly solutions.

"We're seeing a meaningful shift in how consumers across Asia Pacific think about stablecoins," said Nischint Sanghavi, head of digital currencies at Visa's APAC division. He noted that the primary goal now is turning this growing curiosity into trusted, familiar payment experiences that work seamlessly at scale.

To support this growth, Visa is expanding its stablecoin settlement network to cover additional tokens and blockchains. Meanwhile, Visa partner Reap is preparing local-currency stablecoins—including potential tokens backed by the Hong Kong dollar, South Korean won, and Japanese yen—to enable around-the-clock foreign exchange settlement.

Yield-Bearing Stablecoins and Real-World Assets

Stablecoins are also expanding beyond basic payments into yield-generating financial products.

Research from CoinDesk Research and RealFi shows that diversified Real-World Asset (RWA) stablecoins are generating 5% to 7% yields sourced from real credit markets. This comes at a time when native crypto lending rates have compressed toward 4%.

Innovations like GENIUS are pushing yield sourcing off-chain, helping analysts project that the total addressable market for productive stablecoins could expand to $4 billion within three years.

Note: Digital asset yields fluctuate based on market conditions. Past returns of digital assets do not guarantee future results.

Broad Market Roundup: Other Key Crypto Stories

Here is a breakdown of other significant developments across the global crypto landscape:

• Thailand Approves Crypto ETFs: Thailand has opened its doors to locally listed BitcoinBTC+0.20% and EtherETH-0.06% spot ETFs.
• New York AG Wins $35M Settlement: Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky faces a lifetime crypto ban and up to $35 million in financial penalties in a settlement with the NY Attorney General.
• Ledger Investigates Security Incident: Hardware wallet provider Ledger is investigating reports of potential wallet tampering connected to $86 million in stolen crypto.
• DWF Labs Files $141M Lawsuit: DWF Labs subsidiaries sued crypto custodian BitGo for $141 million, alleging a breach of a token lock-up agreement.
• Bitcoin Price Stability: Bitcoin steadied near $82,500 after former U.S. President Trump ruled out immediate military strikes on Iran before the midterms, alleviating short-term market fears.
• Robinhood Explores Priority Execution: Robinhood Chain is considering technology that gives priority order execution to paying traders.
• U.S. CFTC Updates Regulations: Regulators are working to classify event contracts under standard swap rules amid active legal disputes.
• Zcash Focuses on Quantum Security: Developers set a January target to roll out quantum-resistant payment features following recent protocol updates.
• UK Issues Sanctions: The United Kingdom sanctioned three crypto exchanges over alleged ties to Russian networks.
• Meanwhile Raises $37.5 Million: Bitcoin insurance start-up Meanwhile secured $37.5 million in funding led by Bain Capital Crypto.