Money still doesn’t move the way the rest of the internet does. Sending an email takes seconds and costs nothing, but settling a cross-border payment can still take days and come with high transfer and currency conversion fees. The stablecoin sandwich changes that: it moves value at internet speed but settles in familiar currencies. Built on infrastructure that runs continuously and transparently, it makes international payments feel instant.
Below, you’ll see how the stablecoin sandwich works in practice, where it’s being adopted, and what it reveals about the next phase of global finance.
What’s in this article?
- What is a stablecoin sandwich?
- How does a stablecoin sandwich work?
- Why use the stablecoin sandwich for international payments?
- What are the challenges and regulatory considerations for the stablecoin sandwich?
- How is the stablecoin sandwich being used today?
What is a stablecoin sandwich?
A stablecoin sandwich is a cross-border payment strategy in which a transfer starts and ends in a fiat currency but moves as stablecoins in the middle. It’s a modern way to move money across borders without the maze of correspondent banks, hidden foreign exchange (FX) markups, or days-long delays. A transaction begins in local currency, converts briefly into stablecoin (a digital token pegged to another asset, often a fiat currency such as the US dollar) and then converts back into local money at its destination.
Cross-border payments have always relied on a chain of intermediaries passing messages through legacy networks, and every link adds latency and cost. The stablecoin sandwich compresses that structure into a single digital settlement layer. Transfers clear in minutes, not days, funds can move on weekends, and the value doesn’t drift during the transaction—fiat-pegged stablecoins maintain parity with the underlying currencies.
Stablecoins have matured into real financial infrastructure. By mid-2025, the US dollar-denominated stablecoin market was worth $225 billion and accounted for about 7% of the overall cryptocurrency market. The stablecoin sandwich model doesn’t ask businesses to “go crypto:” it just uses the blockchain as the network beneath the surface, while senders and receivers stay in their familiar currencies.
How does a stablecoin sandwich work?
The stablecoin sandwich replaces a tangle of intermediaries with a single digital layer that carries value cleanly from one currency system to another. It happens in three steps that are almost invisible to the end user.
Step 1: Converting local currency into stablecoins
The process begins when a business or individual converts their local currency into a stablecoin, often one pegged to the US dollar. Each digital token is backed 1:1 by reserves held in regulated financial institutions. That backing is what makes the stablecoin dependable as a settlement asset.
This first step is known as the on-ramp. Platforms such as Bridge connect directly to banks and payment processors, so the conversion happens in the background with compliance checks built in.
Step 2: Moving the stablecoin across borders
Once the sender holds stablecoins, the payment can move instantly across a blockchain network. Settlement happens in minutes, even across continents. Because the value rides on-chain, every transaction is transparent and traceable: it has a complete audit trail that traditional wire transfers can’t match. That reliability makes cash flow more predictable and working capital easier to plan around for companies managing supplier payments or global payroll.
Step 3: Converting back into local currency
At the destination, the recipient redeems the stablecoin for their own currency. Depending on the setup, this might happen automatically (funds arrive in the local account) or the recipient might choose to hold the stablecoin to convert later. Off-ramp partners handle compliance, currency conversion, and settlement, often within the same day. The user experience is the same as any local transfer, but the money has crossed borders in record time.
Why use the stablecoin sandwich for international payments?
Cross-border payments have historically been an exercise in compromise between speed, cost, visibility, and control. The stablecoin sandwich changes that equation. It replaces the slow, opaque settlement process of traditional finance with a digital one that’s faster, auditable, and always on.
Here are the main benefits the stablecoin sandwich offers.
Speed that resets expectations
In the traditional system, money hops between banks that each close their books once per business day. A transfer can sit in limbo for 48 hours or longer. Businesses have to plan around banking holidays or reconciliation delays.
Stablecoins operate continuously, across weekends and time zones. Once local currency is converted, the value moves instantly on-chain and settles in minutes. And recipients can use funds as soon as they arrive, which frees up working capital that would otherwise be trapped mid-transfer.
Cost efficiency that compounds
Traditional international payments run on expensive infrastructure, with each intermediary taking a share. Each conversion or compliance check adds another fee.
The stablecoin sandwich trims this chain down to one conversion on each end and a single, low-cost blockchain transaction in between. On-chain transfers often cost pennies, and there’s no mystery about where fees come from. Because the value moves in a fiat-pegged asset, companies avoid currency exchange rate swings that eat into margins. Those savings translate directly into measurable return on capital.
Scale and interoperability at the network level
Stablecoins are borderless by design. Once value is tokenized, it can move across multiple blockchains, digital wallets, and financial platforms without losing parity. One stablecoin can serve hundreds of payment routes that would otherwise need bespoke banking integrations. Treasury and accounting systems can plug into stablecoin networks through application programming interfaces (APIs) rather than country-by-country banking relationships. And because stablecoin markets often reference the US dollar, they provide a consistent unit of account across jurisdictions for simpler settlement and reporting.
Transparency that builds trust
Legacy payment networks obscure where a transaction stands. A wire transfer can vanish into an “in transit” status for days.
Stablecoin-based transfers leave an immutable record on the blockchain. Both counterparties can confirm when a transaction has cleared without waiting for intermediaries. The on-chain record supports compliance, accounting, and audit functions with precise timestamps: When paired with licensed issuers and compliant on/off-ramps, stablecoin payments can meet or exceed the traceability standards of existing systems.
Taken together, these advantages turn the stablecoin sandwich into a practical tool for modern commerce. Payments that once required multiple counterparties and days of settlement can now close in near real time, at a fraction of the cost, with full audit visibility. And because firms such as Bridge handle the complexity behind the scenes—routing, compliance, liquidity—the user experience remains simple.
What are the challenges and regulatory considerations for the stablecoin sandwich?
The stablecoin sandwich operates in a closely watched area of modern finance. Moving money between fiat and blockchain systems means navigating both law, trust, and perception. The innovation is real, but so are the risks and responsibilities that come with it.
Here’s what businesses looking to get involved with stablecoins should be aware of.
Changing regulations
The rules governing stablecoins are still being written. Different countries are at different stages of defining how digital assets fit within their financial systems. The EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework and the US’s GENIUS Act (which will go into effect by 2027) set explicit reserve and transparency requirements for issuing stablecoin. Other markets—Singapore, Hong Kong, the UK—are building their own versions.
Operational risk
Not all stablecoins are built alike. The safest are fully reserved and regularly attested and hold high-quality liquid assets (such as cash or short-term treasuries) in regulated banks. But poorly structured or opaque stablecoins expose users to depegging risk or counterparty failure. And in the event of a failed transaction or issuer insolvency, determining who bears responsibility isn’t straightforward. Clear terms of service, insurance coverage, and regulatory licenses help define where the risk sits.
Legal risk
Any platform facilitating stablecoin transfers has to integrate traditional financial compliance (e.g., Know Your Customer, anti-money laundering, sanctions screening) with crypto-native controls such as digital wallet address monitoring and transaction analytics. That gets harder when a single payment crosses multiple legal jurisdictions: some countries treat stablecoins as e-money, others as commodities, others still as unregulated tokens. Many jurisdictions require stablecoin transactions that move between custodial platforms to carry originator and beneficiary information, just like wire transfers. Businesses operating globally must adapt compliance programs to each environment—a costly and ongoing task.
Adoption and perception barriers
Human and institutional behavior can take time to shift. Finance teams accustomed to wire transfers and direct debits might hesitate to introduce blockchain networks into their treasury flows without assurances about custody, accounting treatment, and audit readiness. Stablecoin providers must separate their work from speculative narratives and demonstrate reliability equal to established financial institutions.
The cost of integration is another factor: without strong APIs and fiat gateways, the overhead of connecting stablecoin flows into existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) and banking systems can outweigh the benefits.
Coordinating across the landscape
Infrastructure providers in this space connect three distinct systems: fiat banking networks, stablecoin networks, and global payout mechanisms. For example, a platform must select and manage regulated stablecoin issuers, integrate with banking partners in multiple jurisdictions, embed anti-money laundering (AML) checks and sanctions screening, and monitor liquidity and finality across blockchains.
Providers need to manage all this in a way that feels seamless to the business on both ends. Payments must settle reliably, with no ambiguity about who stands behind it or how it arrived. Bridge’s Orchestration APIs make moving money from point A to point B simple, whether you’re scheduling recurring transfers or receiving one-off payments from external parties.
How is the stablecoin sandwich being used today?
The stablecoin sandwich is already shaping how value moves across industries. From remittances to corporate treasury, organizations are using it wherever the traditional system still slows or fragments money in motion.
Here’s a closer look at how it’s being used today.
Remittances
Providers use the sandwich to cut out hops that add days and fees. Funds enter as local cash, ride as a dollar-pegged stablecoin, and land as local cash on the other side. The result: same-day access instead of multi-day waits, cleaner FX, and less value lost to spreads. In inflation-prone markets, some recipients hold the stablecoin briefly as a dollar proxy, then off-ramp when needed.
B2B and supplier payments
Exporters and marketplaces settle invoices on shipment rather than after a wire transfer clears. Stablecoin settlement gives near-real-time confirmation, so working capital isn’t tied up in transit. Finance teams also get a precise, timestamped trail for audits—no more “in transit” black boxes.
Global payroll and contractor payouts
Platforms paying thousands of workers across countries lean on stablecoins to standardize timing and cost. The flow stays fiat-in/fiat-out, but the middle leg removes cutoff windows and weekend delays. Contractors who prefer dollars can keep the USD-pegged stablecoin balance; others auto-convert to local currency on arrival.
Treasury and liquidity moves
Multinationals convert regional balances into a USD-pegged stablecoin to repatriate or redeploy funds quickly, including weekends. Policies govern when to auto-convert, when to pause (e.g., when the currency conversion worsens), and which blockchain networks to use. The ultimate goal is less currency drift and faster internal settlement.
When ease of use, reserve quality, and strong regulatory compliance all line up, the sandwich makes global payments feel as simple and predictable as local ones.
Bridge is not a bank. The Prepaid Debit Visa Card is issued by Lead Bank and managed by Bridge Ventures, LLC. Fees may apply. See www.bridge.xyz/legal for more details.
The content in this article is for general information and education purposes only and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Bridge does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy, or currency of the information in the article. You should seek the advice of a competent attorney or accountant licensed to practice in your jurisdiction for advice on your particular situation.
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