Adjusted Stablecoin Transfers Reach $891 Billion in Third Quarter

Adjusted stablecoin transfers totaled $891 billion in the third quarter of 2026, more than quadrupling from early 2023 as banks and businesses expanded payment trials.

The quarterly total works out to more than $400 million per hour. It is an adjusted measure that excludes some transfer activity, rather than a count of every stablecoin transaction. The comparison runs from early 2023 to the third quarter of 2026; it does not describe growth over the past year.

A separate measure shows how much activity takes place when U.S. banks are closed. For screened stablecoin transfers, 73% of volume fell outside U.S. banking hours, including overnight periods, weekends and holidays.

Settlement trials involving stablecoins or tokenized deposits have taken place at seven of the 10 largest U.S. banks. That count does not mean all seven tested stablecoins, and a trial does not establish that a bank has launched a service.

Business use is also expanding. An estimated 30% of mid-market companies conducting cross-border business use or pilot stablecoins, compared with 10% in 2024. Business-to-business payment volume increased 36% from a year earlier. Those figures measure company adoption and payment activity, respectively, rather than the same group of transactions.

The number of blockchain addresses holding stablecoins reached 293 million. Because an individual or business can control multiple addresses, the figure cannot be read as a count of users.

Interest in bank-based access extends to consumers. In a separate survey, 18% of U.S. adults expressed interest in purchasing or using stablecoins with their main bank or financial institution. That figure measures interest, not current use.

Payment providers are adding tools for institutions handling these transactions. Mastercard has introduced stablecoin risk checks for banks and payment providers. Its service scores a transfer before it reaches a blockchain so an institution can decide whether to review the payment more closely.