SINGAPORE — Arf, a Swiss provider of short-term liquidity for cross-border payments, is set to join Circle Payments Network (CPN) in a move that will provide eligible users access to on-demand credit, effectively eliminating the need for prefunding, or tying up a large fiat balance before settlement occurs.
The integration, powered by Huma Finance’s PayFi network, aims to make cross-border stablecoin settlements faster and more capital-efficient, said Irfan Ganchi, senior vice president of product management at Circle Internet (CRCL). Circle is the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap.
The development addresses a fundamental challenge in cross-border finance — how to move money quickly across borders without locking up large amounts of capital in prefunding, which limits flexibility and increases costs. Payments giant Visa (V) is also working on the problem and is starting a prefunding pilot for the use of stablecoins through Visa Direct, its real-time payments platform, it said Tuesday.
By enabling on-demand credit inside a major stablecoin network, Arf, which is regulated by Switzerland’s Financial Services Standard Association (VQF), and Huma are facilitating same-day USDC settlement, helping institutions free up working capital, reduce costs and accelerate payments, Ganchi said at the Circle Forum in Singapore.
Real-time stablecoin payments and reducing prefunding hurdles have been longstanding goals in the crypto and fintech industries. However, this partnership stands out as one of the prominent ones to include regulated entities and offer direct integration into a major stablecoin network, such as CPN.
Stablecoin boom
USDC holds a market value of $73.26 billion. Unlike some other cryptocurrencies, USDC operates within regulated frameworks, offering greater reliability and trust.
The adoption of stablecoins in cross-border transactions and other user cases beyond trading has been steadily growing.
According to Payments Consulting Network, 90% of financial institutions have actively integrated stablecoins, with nearly half already using them for payments. Traditional banks are twice as likely to prioritize cross-border payments, with 58% using stablecoins specifically for international transfers.
According to Treasury & Risk, the overall market for stablecoins is poised to hit $3 trillion by 2028.