Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. are among large multinational companies which have recently discussed issuing their own stablecoins in the US, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people.
A Walmart spokesperson declined to comment. Amazon representatives didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Expedia Group Inc. and airlines have held similar deliberations, the WSJ said. Stablecoins are crypto tokens typically pegged to a currency like the dollar, making them better suited to using for payments than more volatile coins.
Donald Trump’s return to power in the US and legislation making its way through Congress have sparked renewed enthusiasm for stablecoins, which advocates say could dramatically cut the cost of payment and speed up transfers. Tether Holdings SA’s USDT, by far the biggest stablecoin, has seen its circulation swell to $155 billion.
Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. fell, with Visa slipping as much as 7.1% and Mastercard dropping as much as 6.2%. Both declines were the biggest for the shares of companies since April. Any moves by Amazon, Walmart and other global retailers to set up their own blockchain-based payment rails could hit credit card issuers’ revenues.
Banks around the world, concerned that the lucrative business of handling payments and transfers could be at risk, are also moving to issue stablecoins. Deutsche Bank AG and Banco Santander SA are among lenders considering such tokens, Bloomberg News has reported.
Written by: Philip Lagerkranser — With assistance from Emily Mason @Bloomberg
The post “Amazon and Walmart Weigh Issuing Own Stablecoins, WSJ Says” first appeared on Bloomberg