The function of digital property in the way forward for finance—vital or not—isn’t a settled debate but, however extra agnostics are discovering sensible causes to turn out to be stablecoin converts.
The most important information within the trade final week got here from MoneyGram, the 85-year-old US firm, which partnered with Crossmint on September 17 to combine stablecoin funds into its world remittance rails. Whereas longtime competitor Western Union and fintech rivals, comparable to Remitly, have caught to pilots and backend integrations, MoneyGram may very well be the primary legacy remittance participant to roll out a consumer-facing stablecoin product.
The worth proposition of stablecoins is now ingrained in reminiscence: immediate settlement (T+0), decrease charges from reducing out intermediaries, deeper liquidity that’s globally accessible, and not one of the switch caps that outline conventional remittances.
A thriving stablecoin financial system threatens the place of world banks and remittance corporations which have lengthy sat within the center. The result’s twofold: rising adoption amongst companies and people, and a scramble by legacy establishments to maintain digital property from consuming into their core markets.
Head-on collision for market management
Nigeria is an honest marketplace for remittance giants comparable to Western Union and MoneyGram. With an enormous diasporan inhabitants, the remittance influx yearly since 2010 has crossed $17 billion. Conventional banks in Nigeria associate with these remittance providers to be money pick-up factors for patrons receiving cash from overseas, with the typical settlement time often taking greater than 5 days (T+5).
In 2022, the 12 months earlier than MoneyGram was acquired and brought non-public, 91% of its income got here from world cash transfers. That very same 12 months, world remittance was about $843 billion; at 2.4% of the worldwide remittance worth, Nigeria alone is an honest marketplace for MoneyGram to compete in.
But with stablecoins receiving consideration, this threatens the aggressive moat that companies like MoneyGram and Western Union have constructed over time.
The most important winner in stablecoin adoption is Tether, the US agency issuing the USDT stablecoin, and one of many world’s most worthwhile corporations, with $4.9 billion web revenue in Q2 2025 alone. Nigerians transacted $22 billion in stablecoins between mid-2023 and mid-2024, in response to Yellow Card, the pan-African stablecoin funds startup, with most of them choosing USDT.
In Nigeria, stablecoins have turn out to be the infrastructure for people, freelancers, and firms that want to carry or transfer {dollars} in an financial system with a weaker forex and sluggish banks. Folks use them to hedge financial savings, obtain worldwide pay, ship remittances, and settle suppliers.
Oluwatimilehin Oluwasanmi, CEO of Cryptonia, a Nigerian stablecoin-based funds startup, informed TechCabal that almost all of its customers flip to digital property for hedging in opposition to naira depreciation, making cross-border funds, accessing world digital providers, and fast peer-to-peer settlements.
“Our [Cryptonia] greatest consumer teams are freelancers who bypass delays in greenback payouts, small companies paying worldwide suppliers with out financial institution bottlenecks, and merchants changing earnings rapidly to native fiat,” he stated.
Shock institutional adoption of stablecoins
Institutional adoption of stablecoins has deepened past the retail tales that usually dominate headlines. Chainalysis reported that power corporations and service provider funds dominate multi-million-dollar stablecoin transactions taking place globally. What started as a hedge for people has turn out to be infrastructure for world industries transferring giant volumes of cash.
Shiga Digital, a Nigerian stablecoin-based funds startup, positions itself on the centre of this shift. The startup pitches itself because the stablecoin financial institution for companies, offering rails for corporations that want predictable entry to {dollars}. It counts oil and fuel corporations amongst its purchasers, alongside fintechs that run every little thing from worldwide settlements to payroll.
“We service 5 fintechs that use stablecoins for various causes,” stated co-founder Dami Etomi in an interview with TechCabal. “Every part from worldwide settlements to transferring investor cash into Nigeria to working payroll for groups.”
Etomi’s perspective is formed by his personal profession. He spent practically a decade within the oil and fuel sector, a market the place cross-border settlements and greenback liquidity are essential. His background, he stated, made the gaps in Nigeria’s banking system apparent, forming the concept for Shiga as a platform tailor-made to corporates.
Etomi pointed to an instance that exhibits how vital these rails have turn out to be. Mercury, the US fintech financial institution, stopped onboarding Nigerian startups after the nation was positioned on the FATF Greylist in 2023.
“The entire purpose Nigerian startups use [Mercury] is to entry USD from buyers,” stated Etomi. “The identical fintechs that had been excluded from providers like Mercury can use stablecoins to wire their cash. They don’t have to attend weeks or fear about being reduce off due to their jurisdiction.”
In June, Tether backed Shiga, signalling confidence from the sector’s dominant participant. Co-founder Abiola Shogbeni stated institutional adoption for stablecoins for funds, payroll, and treasuries—and even for people—rests on belief.
“Folks fear about scams, and so they lack information about wallets,” he stated. “Belief comes from making funds clear and quick.”
Shiga’s technique to construct round stablecoins and supply deep FX liquidity swimming pools for corporates displays a broader development it’s witnessing throughout markets, the place corporations are adopting digital property as a necessity. The demand is already right here, Etomi stated. The problem is constructing platforms that may ship it at scale.
A parallel system
Using stablecoins is making a parallel monetary system in Nigeria, filling gaps left by banks.
“Stablecoins are how fintechs and companies in Nigeria are surviving,” stated Etomi. “They offer corporations a method to entry and transfer {dollars} in actual time when the normal system has failed them.”
Institutional adoption is rising, however with out clear regulatory frameworks throughout Africa, many corporates will stay reluctant to overtly acknowledge their use. The result’s {that a} parallel system expands quietly, with out the transparency that will come if companies may function within the open.
Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is again in Lagos on October 15–16! Meet and be taught from Africa’s high founders, creatives & tech leaders for two days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward concepts. Get your tickets now: moonshot.techcabal.com
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