# Stablecoin Payment Savings Shrink When Cash-Out Costs Rise

By John Kim

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/business/35439
Published: 2026-10-20T08:05:23.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-20T08:05:23.000Z
Section: Business

> Bank wire exchange-rate markups reached 4.7% in a small sample, while median fintech costs on $10,000 U.S. transfers ranged from $40 to $60 across developed-market currency groups.

Stablecoins can move value across borders without correspondent banks and with low blockchain fees. But converting money into a token and then into local currency can absorb some of the savings, making the full payment cost more than the blockchain transfer alone suggests.

A route that starts and ends in national currencies may still involve several exchanges or other intermediaries. Its total costs can include exchange-rate markups, trading charges, network fees and withdrawals. After a token transfer, recipients may still need to convert it and wait for bank processing before the money is available in their accounts.

In a small sample of bank wires, exchange-rate markups ranged from about 2% to 4.7%, before wire fees. For $10,000 transfers from the United States, median fintech costs across developed-market currency groups were $40 to $60. Some destinations were substantially more expensive.

Stablecoin exchange rates were favorable on some routes from developed to emerging markets, with capital controls contributing to that advantage. Those rates do not remove the costs involved in entering or leaving the token route.

Trading U.S. dollar stablecoins against other currencies can be constrained by thin markets, limited market depth and volatile pricing. Those conditions limit the size of transfers that can be made at favorable rates. Access to national currencies, liquidity and intermediary costs all shape whether stablecoins offer a practical cost advantage for a particular cross-border payment.