Crypto Biz: Stablecoins are paving the way for mass adoption of crypto, June 2-8

cointelegraph.com:

Stablecoins are a controversial subject in crypto. Questioning the legitimacy and backing of Tether (USDT) is a right of passage for many entering the crypto market for the first time. The meltdown of the Terra ecosystem left little doubt that algorithmic stablecoins don’t have a future beyond Do Kwon’s fantasies. Pesky regulators are constantly poking and prodding at dollar-pegged assets in order to carve out firmer rules on their usage. 

But, if you look beyond all the fear, uncertainty and doubt, stablecoins are providing liquidity to millions of people who don’t have access to dollars because of capital controls or sanctions, or because hyperinflation is destroying their local currency. This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter looks at the role of stablecoins in fueling e-commerce. We also do some prodding of our own to see if a major payment platform is prepping its own stable asset.

If crypto is ever going to achieve mainstream success as a payment system, stablecoins will likely play a major role. This week, global payment processor Checkout.com announced that it was launching a new stablecoin settlement system centered around Circle’s USD Coin (USDC). Now, merchants that use Checkout.com will be able to receive USDC payments and convert them into fiat instantly. As it turns out, Checkout.com already settled more than $300 million in USDC transactions during its beta testing phase. Regardless of what you think of them, stablecoins continue to deliver real-world utility.

On Tuesday, digital asset exchange Crypto.com announced that its Cronos blockchain ecosystem had launched a $100 million accelerator program to fast-track decentralized finance, Web3 and metaverse projects. The new fund aims to help up-and-coming crypto