Stable News is Lumx’s weekly curation dedicated to highlighting the key developments in stablecoins, digital infrastructure, and the future of global payments.
In this edition, signs of institutional maturity become explicit. From the United States to Japan, there is an increasingly clear alignment among regulators, banks, and large enterprises around a shared understanding: stablecoins are no longer a technological promise, but a structural component of the new financial architecture. While regional nuances remain, the movement is broadly coordinated.
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FSOC softens its stance and recognizes regulatory progress on stablecoins in the US
The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) published its 2025 annual report with a notable shift in tone toward stablecoins. For the first time since it began monitoring the sector, the council stopped classifying stablecoins as an imminent systemic risk and highlighted the GENIUS Act as a regulatory inflection point.
The report acknowledges that the legislation brought federal clarity for payment stablecoin issuers, creating incentives for innovation without compromising financial stability. It also points to important progress in the posture of banking agencies, which have become more explicit in allowing regulated institutions to engage with digital assets — including custody, tokenization, and the use of public blockchains.
This institutional shift reflects a more constructive political environment and a growing perception that, under the right framework, stablecoins can strengthen, rather than weaken, the financial system.
Why this matters:
✅ Greater legal certainty accelerates institutional adoption in the US
✅ Official discourse now recognizes the economic role of stablecoins
✅ FSOC paves the way for deeper banking integration with digital assets
Circle, Ripple, Paxos, Fidelity, and BitGo receive federal banking approval
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) conditionally approved federal banking charter applications from Circle, Ripple, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity. Together, these institutions are responsible for stablecoins such as USDC, RLUSD, PYUSD, and USDS, which now exceed US$313 billion in combined market capitalization.
The decision marks the definitive entry of these issuers into the US national banking system and recognizes their role as critical infrastructure within modern finance. Other major players, including Coinbase, Crypto.com, and Stripe, are awaiting similar decisions.
This move further consolidates the rapid institutionalization of the sector, with stablecoins increasingly treated as legitimate instruments within traditional banking architecture.
Why this matters:
✅ Issuers now operate under federal banking supervision
✅ Sets precedents for full integration with the financial system
✅ Reinforces the GENIUS Act as a catalyst for institutional adoption
YouTube enables creator payments via PYUSD
According to Fortune, content creators in the United States can now receive payments from YouTube in PYUSD, PayPal’s stablecoin. The integration leverages PayPal’s existing infrastructure, without requiring Google’s platform to interact directly with digital assets.
The initiative expands the practical reach of stablecoins across one of the world’s largest digital ecosystems and illustrates how on-chain settlement can be integrated invisibly for end users. Since September, PYUSD has grown from US$1 billion to US$3.9 billion in market capitalization, driven by institutional integrations.
Why this matters:
✅ Stablecoins reach massive scale with minimal user friction
✅ On-chain dollar payout models gain global traction
✅ PYUSD strengthens its role in PayPal’s digital payments strategy
Visa creates a global unit dedicated exclusively to stablecoins
Visa announced the creation of the Stablecoins Advisory Practice, a global advisory division focused exclusively on stablecoins. The unit will provide strategic, technical, and commercial support to banks, fintechs, and merchants looking to build and scale products based on these assets.
The initiative formalizes work Visa has already been doing: today, more than 130 card programs linked to stablecoins operate across over 40 countries, with billions of dollars in annualized volume via USDC.
By structuring stablecoins as a standalone business line, Visa reinforces the thesis that stablecoins represent the primary on-chain payment layer, while Bitcoin increasingly assumes the role of a store of value and collateral.
Why this matters:
✅ Stablecoins gain a dedicated unit within the world’s largest card network
✅ Visa positions stablecoins as “transactional money” in the crypto economy
✅ Education and advisory services accelerate adoption in traditional finance
Japan accelerates regulated yen stablecoin model for 2026
SBI Holdings and Startale announced plans to issue a fully regulated yen-backed stablecoin via Shinsei Trust, with a focus on tokenized assets and cross-border settlement starting in 2026. The project will integrate with SBI VC Trade, which already operates with USDC and plans to distribute Ripple’s RLUSD.
The initiative aligns with the Financial Services Agency’s (FSA) regulatory sandbox, which has authorized pilots involving stablecoins issued by three of Japan’s largest banks. The model introduces a programmable yen, operated by trust banks and interoperable with global markets.
Japan continues to advance a pragmatic approach centered on stability, interoperability, and institutional use, solidifying its position as one of the world’s most sophisticated regulatory hubs for digital assets.
Why this matters:
✅ Japan structures a regulated stablecoin focused on tokenized assets
✅ Trust banks assume a central role in the new financial architecture
✅ Strategy strengthens the yen’s competitiveness in the on-chain environment
The broader backdrop of this week reveals more than isolated events. It points to the formation of an institutional consensus, albeit a heterogeneous one, around the strategic role of stablecoins in the global financial system.
Banks, regulators, and major corporations are no longer merely testing: they are regulating, issuing, integrating, and distributing stablecoins with ambitions for scale.
This marks the definitive transition of stablecoins from the edge of the system to its operational core.
See you next edition.
