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- Stellar shared Stanford-linked research covering 41 million Airtm stablecoin transactions over five years.
- 96% of the reviewed stablecoin transfers settled in under one hour, while 99.4% completed within one day.
Stellar shared new research linked to Stanford University on how stablecoins are being used in cross-border payments. Lisa Nestor, Director of Research at the Stanford Future of Digital Currency Initiative, revealed that the study reviewed more than 41 million Airtm transactions over five years. The results were compared with G20’s 2030 payment targets. The data focused on transaction time, transfer cost, and the role of low-value payments in global finance.
From the study figures, about 96% of transactions were cleared in less than one hour, while 99.4% were completed within one day. These numbers placed stablecoin-based transfers ahead of the G20 cross-border payments targets.
G20 set targets for faster, cheaper cross-border payments by 2030.
New research from @Stanford’s @nestorious828 shows that stablecoins are years ahead of the game. The report analyzed 41M+ @airtminc transactions and found that stablecoin transactions:
• Overwhelmingly (96%)… pic.twitter.com/oiDySRSkkv
— Stellar (@StellarOrg) March 18, 2026
Additionally, Lisa Nestor noted that around 51% of the transactions met the G20’s 3% remittance target, while 36.7% met the 1% retail payment target. For a $200 transfer, Airtm posted an average cost just below 4%, compared with a global average of 6.64%.
The study also gave weight to smaller transfers. Payments worth $2 or less made up 16.4% of the total, while 41.8% came in below $10. That trend pointed to a payment method that can handle small transactions without losing much of the value to fees.
On Wednesday, we reported that PayPal expanded its PYUSD stablecoin to 70 markets, extending new utility to the Stellar ecosystem alongside Ethereum and Solana. Users can now send PYUSD globally, convert it to local fiat, and withdraw or spend funds through PayPal’s platform.
Stellar Links Stablecoins to Practical Payment Use
The research also separated blockchain settlement from local withdrawal and deposit systems. On-chain transfers moved quickly, but the full user cost still depended on access to local liquidity and marketplace rails. That detail placed attention on the role of regional infrastructure in the final payment experience.
The discussion on the Block by Block podcast covered open and closed networks, as well as user behavior after receiving funds. Some recipients kept value in digital dollars, while others moved funds into local currency. This pattern reflected the different ways stablecoins are being used across payment corridors.
The findings shared by Stellar tied blockchain rails to faster transfers, lower friction for smaller payments, and more competitive pricing in corridors with liquidity access.
Previously, CNF reported that Akuna Wallet joined the Bank of Ghana’s VASP sandbox to test Stellar-based cross-border payment tools for creators, freelancers, and digital entrepreneurs. The platform is targeting lower transfer costs in Sub-Saharan Africa, where cross-border payment fees average 8.8%, well above the UN’s 3% goal.
This month, Aon completed a stablecoin insurance premium payment pilot using USDC on Ethereum and PYUSD on Solana. The transaction marked the first known insurance premium settlement in stablecoins by a major global broker.
