A Soon-to-Be $2 Trillion Stablecoin Market? Stripe, Shopify and Banks Want In - Ep. 851

Stablecoins are having a moment.

From Stripe’s acquisition of crypto wallet startup Privy, to Shopify integrating USDC, to Plasma raising $500 million for its stablecoin-optimized sidechain, stablecoins are having a moment. And at the center of it all is Circle, which had one of the most successful IPOs in decades.

But what’s really happening under the surface? And who’s best positioned as stablecoins go mainstream?

Vicky Fu, co-founder at Yala and former engineering director at Circle, joins Unchained to explain:

How she saw Circle as deeply undervalued before the IPO buzz

What Stripe’s crypto moves signal for the broader market

Why retail payments could become stablecoins’ breakout use case

How network effects give Circle a serious edge, even as banks circle the space

Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com

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Guest

Vicky Fu, co-founder at Yala 

Links

Unchained: GENIUS Stablecoin Bill Advances in U.S. Senate

Bloomberg: Bessent Says $2 Trillion Reasonable for Dollar Stablecoin

The Block: Payment giant Stripe to buy crypto wallet firm PrivyMarket

Payment giant Stripe to buy crypto wallet firm Privy

CoinDesk: Crypto startup Plasma’s XPL Token Sale Hits $500M as Investors Chase Stablecoin Plays

The Block: Plasma doubles its deposit cap, clarifies it is eyeing $50M public sale at $500M FDV

Reuters: Societe Generale becomes first major bank to launch dollar-pegged stablecoin

The Information: Financial Markets Giant DTCC Explores a Stablecoin 

Timestamps:

🎬 0:00 Intro

🔍 2:40 Why Vicky believed Circle was deeply mispriced BEFORE the IPO hype

🏗️ 11:336 How Circle’s quiet infrastructure play is more powerful than it looks

🛒 17:40 Why the Shopify–USDC integration could be a turning point

💼 19:14 What Stripe’s acquisition of Privy signals

🔥 23:42 What the Plasma ICO reveals about surging interest in the sector

🏦 29:50 Whether crypto-native issuers can really compete with banks entering the stablecoin race

📰 34:10 Weekly News Recap

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