What is a Stablecoin? Corporate Treasury and B2B Payments 2026

A stablecoin is a digital asset with a fixed value, designed to optimize cross-border transactions. Stablecoins are a tool for treasury management and cross-border B2B payments, where operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness are crucial.

By 2026, the financial landscape is undergoing a transformation driven by blockchain technology, crypto payment rails, and so stablecoins are emerging as key players.

For Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) and Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) in markets such as Mexico, thoroughly understanding what a stablecoin is and how to strategically implement it is no longer just one option among many, but a necessity to maintain the competitiveness of their cross-border operations.

In this article, we explain what a stablecoin is and its security mechanisms, its practical applications in the corporate environment and B2B payments, and the role of traditional banking in the world of stablecoins.

1. What is a stablecoin?

A stablecoin is a type of digital asset designed to minimize the volatility inherent in many other cryptocurrencies.

The value of a stablecoin, which can be denominated in different currencies (USD, EUR, MX, COP), is backed 1:1. For example, the equivalence 1USDC = 1USD results from collateral backing each unit issued.

The main objective is to combine the speed and efficiency of digital transactions with value predictability.

What are the differences between a stablecoin and other cryptocurrencies?

Stablecoins are also cryptocurrencies because they are built and operate on blockchain technology, benefiting from its attributes of decentralization, transparency, and cryptographic security.

With Cobre, your company can access secure rails for global money movement through crypto payment rails for stabecoins.

Nonetheless,  stablecoins differ from other types of crypto such as Bitcoin or Ethereum, which can fluctuate by as much as 20% or 30% in a matter of weeks. 

While traditional cryptocurrencies aim to serve as a store of value or a speculative medium of exchange, stablecoins aspire to be “programmable money” with a predictable value.

Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum)

• Volatility: High; this is a type of equity investment.
• Purpose: It is an investment instrument that serves as a long-term store of value and is often compared to gold.
• Function: To serve as a speculative digital asset.

Stablecoin:

• Volatility: Low. Its value is backed 1:1 by a fiat currency or commodities.
• Purpose: To serve as a tool for cross-border payments, B2B payments, and even e-commerce.
• Function: To serve as an alternative to traditional banking for treasury operations.

These differences are key, as they have allowed traditional banks to distinguish between the hype surrounding the crypto world and the practical utility of a stablecoin.

Its value does not depend on market speculation, but rather on a backing mechanism designed to maintain its peg to an underlying asset.

First, it is necessary to understand how a stablecoin maintains its peg and the safeguards that protect it, before considering how to use them for B2B payments.

2. How do stablecoins maintain their fixed value?

A stablecoin can maintain a 1:1 value using one of four different pegging mechanisms: backed by fiat currency (EUR, MXN, USD, among others), by commodities (oil, gold, silver), by smart contracts, or backed by other cryptoassets.

The 2024–2025 period was pivotal in reshaping perceptions of stablecoins and building trust for their integration into the financial infrastructure.

Stablecoins have paved the way for corporate treasury by offering fast, efficient, and secure solutions for businesses.

Traditional banking has begun to adopt this type of cryptocurrency, with some institutions issuing them, others acting as custodians, or building infrastructure for transactions (stablecoin sandwich).

The collateralization and hedging layers of Stablecoins

A stablecoin’s stability is maintained through various pegging mechanisms (or “de-pegging,” as the process of breaking the peg is known), each with its own implications for corporate treasury.

Fiat-backed stablecoins:

• 1:1 backing: For every stablecoin issued, there is an equivalent amount of fiat currency (USD, EUR, MXN, COP) or low-risk instruments (Treasury bonds) held in reserve.
• Importance of Transparency: Auditing and transparency regarding these reserves are crucial for maintaining confidence in the 1:1 peg.
• Example: Circle (USDC). It publishes daily the balance of cash dollars and U.S. Treasury bonds backing each USDC in circulation.
• Example: Tether (USDT). It commissions independent audits (including with firms such as the Big Four) to demonstrate its parity.

Commodity-backed stablecoins: 

Their value is tied to commodities such as gold, silver, and even oil.

• Volatility: Their volatility may be higher than that of fiat currency.
• B2B Liquidity: Their liquidity for B2B (business-to-business) transactions may be lower.
• Attractiveness to Treasury: They are less attractive to corporate treasury departments than fiat-backed stablecoins.
• Benefit: They can offer diversification.

Algorithmic or smart contract-based stablecoins:

Smart contracts are used to manage the supply and maintain the stablecoin’s price.

• Objective: To maintain parity automatically, without direct backing.
• Audit: The smart contract is publicly auditable, unlike traditional banking with fractional reserves.
• Verification: Anyone can verify the existence and availability of the reserves on the blockchain.

Crypto-backed: 

This applies to stablecoins that use other cryptocurrencies as collateral.

• Over-collateralization: They require collateral exceeding the value of the stablecoin (e.g., $1.50 in Ether for every $1 of stablecoin).
• Volatility Absorption: The excess collateral is used to mitigate the volatility of the underlying asset.
• Although innovative: this model entails a higher level of risk and complexity.

Do traditional banks use stablecoins?

Yes, traditional banks are beginning to integrate, issue, or custody stablecoins to streamline cross-border transactions.

According to Fireblock, 9 out of 10 financial institutions surveyed already use, are testing, or plan to integrate stablecoins, primarily for cross-border payments.

Global financial institutions such as Visa, Mastercard, and even SWIFT are integrating or exploring the use of stablecoins to optimize their own operations and those of their corporate clients.

In addition, global banks are issuing their own stablecoins. Société Générale has CoinVertible, custodied by BNY Mellon, and JPMorgan has JPM Coin for instant institutional settlements.

With this convergence, companies operating in Colombia, Mexico, and other Latin American countries can use stablecoins to take advantage of the digital infrastructure enabled—and, in many cases, overseen—by the financial institutions that manage global capital.

This greatly facilitates the conversion and movement of value pegged to fiat currency.

However, cost variations are drastic: they range from 2% with services like WorldRemit to 26% for international transfers through traditional banking.

The global average cost per transfer is 6.65%, twice the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 3%.

Cross-border transactions using stablecoins, which reduce commission costs and optimize processing times, present an opportunity to improve corporate treasury management for companies in markets such as Colombia or Mexico.

3. Operational Functioning: The Stablecoin Sandwich Model

The stablecoin sandwich model is the most efficient and lowest-risk option for B2B transactions using stablecoins.

Thus, a CFO or CTO can adopt the use of stablecoins without a radical overhaul of accounting practices or a complete migration to volatile cryptoassets.

With the stablecoin sandwich, the stablecoin acts as a highly efficient digital transport tunnel, compared to a traditional SWIFT transfer, minimizing exposure to market volatility.

Anatomy of a Cross-Border B2B transaction using a stablecoin

A cross-border transaction using a stablecoin consists of three phases: on-ramp, conversion and transfer, and off-ramp.

Consider the case of a company in Bogotá (Colombia) that needs to make a payment of $100,000 to a supplier in Miami (United States).

• On-ramp: The company transfers the equivalent amount in Colombian pesos (COP) to a local fintech service provider (such as Cobre or a regulated partner).
• Conversion and transfer: The fintech provider instantly converts those COP into a USD-backed stablecoin (such as USDC). This digital asset is sent via a high-speed, low-cost blockchain network (such as Polygon or Solana) to the receiving partner’s digital wallet in the U.S.
• Off-ramp (withdrawal): Once the stablecoin is received in the United States, it is immediately converted to fiat dollars (USD) and deposited, via local banking channels, into the provider’s corporate account in Miami.

The result is that a transaction that would traditionally take 3 to 5 business days to settle is completed in less than 10 minutes.

Transactions between digital wallets are also possible—for example, if the supplier in Miami also uses stablecoins. However, this involves other risks that require preventive measures such as multi-sig wallets.

This model ensures that exposure to any fluctuations in the stablecoin is minimal, limited to the transit time, while taking advantage of the speed and efficiency of the transfer.

4. How are stablecoins integrated into Latin America’s local infrastructure?

Stablecoins can interact seamlessly within each country’s instant payment systems and financial infrastructure. This allows the speed and efficiency of blockchain to be combined with the convenience and familiarity of local payment systems.

Integration of stablecoins into local payment rails such as SPEI in Mexico

Banxico’s SPEI already has regulations in place to integrate transactions using stablecoins as a means of payment.

The integration of stablecoins into local payment rails such as SPEI in Mexico, ACH in the United States, or Bre-B in Colombia is crucial for transactions involving stablecoins, which rely on both blockchain technology and local payment infrastructure.

Mexican export companies that receive payments in stablecoins for their products or services can access those funds for operational use almost in real time through SPEI.

SPEI provides liquidity synergy for stablecoins thanks to the billions of transactions it processes annually.

Integration of stablecoins into local payment rails such as Bre-B in Colombia

In Colombia, the integration of stablecoin payments is also possible thanks to local payment rails such as Bre-B, the Central Bank’s standard for instant payments.

The combination of stablecoins and an infrastructure like Bre-B enables unprecedented fluidity in B2B payments, bringing together the efficiency of blockchain technology and the local operation of payment rails.

Such an integration would allow Colombian companies to manage a multi-currency treasury with real-time impact.

By receiving international payments via stablecoins—while retaining the payment in local currency in their wallet—companies would overcome the friction associated with traditional international transfers.

For a company in Colombia, this synergy means transforming digital liquidity into pure operational efficiency:

• Instant, widespread distribution: Funds from stablecoins can be used to pay payroll or suppliers via Bre-B keys, ensuring that the money reaches the recipient in seconds, regardless of the bank, day, or time.
• Supply chain efficiency: By combining blockchain technology with Bre-B’s 24/7 payments, friction in B2B payments is eliminated, strengthening relationships with business partners who receive their working capital without banking delays.

This ecosystem allows, for example, funds to be settled in Mexican pesos (MXN) or Colombian pesos (COP) almost instantly, facilitating supply chain management and daily operations.

When we analyze what a stablecoin is from a return on investment (ROI) perspective, the numbers speak for themselves. The use of stablecoins alongside local payment rails offers significant advantages over traditional systems:

What would take time and money in a traditional transfer—increasing the initial cost of the transaction—translates into immediate payments in a cross-border transaction using stablecoins and local currencies.

This ensures availability and settlement within minutes, as well as a significant annual impact on corporate treasury.

Furthermore, the ability to conduct transactions in multiple currencies through a single centralized stablecoin, and then settle locally, drastically simplifies multi-country treasury management.

5. Risk Management: What the CFO and CTO Must Mitigate

There are several risk factors that must be considered and addressed through a mitigation strategy when dealing with stablecoins: liquidity and de-peg risk, custody risk, and cybersecurity risk, among others.

Professional adoption of stablecoins by corporations does not mean ignoring the risks, but rather actively managing them and know the stablecoin's regulations. Both the CFO and the CTO must implement technical and financial due diligence frameworks to mitigate the vulnerabilities inherent in any new financial technology.

Liquidity Risk and Stablecoin Depegging

The greatest fear for a treasurer is that a digital asset will lose its 1:1 peg to the reference asset, a phenomenon known as depegging. Historically, this has occurred due to a lack of transparency or flaws in stablecoin reserves.

To mitigate these risks, the following practices are recommended:

• Prioritize assets with real-time audits: Use stablecoins that have constant “attestations” from reputable firms. One example is USDC, whose reserves are audited, confirmed by the U.S. Treasury, and custodied by institutions such as BlackRock, ensuring immediate liquidity.
• Implement the “Stablecoin Sandwich” strategy: Use the stablecoin strictly as a temporary transfer vehicle rather than a long-term reserve. By maintaining minimal exposure and quickly liquidating into fiat currency, the impact of a potential prolonged decoupling is drastically reduced.

Custody and Cybersecurity Risks

Since blockchain transactions are irreversible, cross-border B2B operations require a robust security approach centered on the following pillars:

• Implementation of multi-signature (multi-sig) wallets: These wallets are essential for corporate governance, as they require the simultaneous digital authorization of two or three executives with distinct roles.
• Elimination of single points of failure: The multi-sig scheme not only prevents internal fraud and individual hacks but also ensures that unauthorized access to a single key does not compromise funds.
• Private key governance: Establishing strict custody protocols for private keys is the primary defense for ensuring the integrity of the digital treasury.

6. The Regulatory Framework for Stablecoins

Mexico’s Fintech Law, or the GENIUS Law, is an example of the regulations that governments and financial institutions are implementing to ensure the security of digital assets used in transactions such as B2B payments.

One of the key reasons why the legal use of stablecoins for B2B transactions and corporate treasury is flourishing in Latin America, in countries like Mexico, is the proactive approach and regulatory clarity that has been implemented.

Far from banning the technology, regulatory frameworks seek to channel it safely.

Fintech Law in Mexico: Regulations for operating within the traditional banking sector

Mexico was one of the first countries to establish a comprehensive legal framework for financial technology with its Law Regulating Financial Technology Institutions, commonly known as the Fintech Law.

The strengthening of regulations in Mexico, which provide for the integration of digital assets into the SPEI system, promotes efficiency and functionality in business transactions. To this end, Banxico introduced a regulation: institutions interested in operating with digital assets, such as stablecoins, must explain how they will avoid or address the risks involved in order to obtain their license.

The benefits of the Fintech Law and the regulations for stablecoins are as follows:

• Stablecoins may be used by Electronic Payment Fund Institutions (EPFIs) and other regulated entities.
• Companies that deal in these digital assets must hold a license.
• These companies are subject to supervision.
• The solvency of these companies is guaranteed.
• Compliance with consumer protection and financial security regulations is ensured.

The law explicitly addresses the treatment of virtual assets, laying the groundwork for the secure integration of stablecoins into B2B payments and corporate treasury operations.

In this context, the GENIUS Act (Guaranteeing Essential National Infrastructure in US-Stablecoins) plays a fundamental role by defining operating rules, reserve requirements, transparency, and safeguards for stablecoins used in corporate transactions, facilitating their widespread adoption and legitimacy in the B2B sector.

Case 1: Payments to International Suppliers (Supply Chain)

A manufacturing company in Mexico imports raw materials from Asia. Traditionally, to ensure that the supplier would release the goods on time, the company had to make the payment several days in advance—perhaps five business days.

With the use of stablecoins, the payment can be processed and settled on the same day the goods are shipped.

This frees up nearly 5 days’ worth of working capital that can be reinvested in operations, used to finance additional inventory, or allocated to other urgent operational needs.

The use of smart contracts can automate this process, releasing the payment conditionally upon confirmation of shipment.

Case 2: Multi-Country Treasury Management

For companies with operations spread across multiple countries, such as Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, stablecoins offer a path to a unified and more efficient treasury.

Instead of keeping capital tied up in different fiat currencies (COP, MXN, PEN), each subject to exchange rate fluctuations and conversion costs, the company can centralize its balances in a primary stablecoin, such as USDC.

Liquidity can then be moved to local bank accounts via local payment rails such as SPEI in Mexico, only when strictly necessary for operations, payroll, or payments to local suppliers.

This optimizes global liquidity management, reduces exposure to exchange rate volatility, and simplifies cross-border financial reconciliation.

Smart contracts can also be integrated into these operations, automating the allocation of funds to subsidiaries based on operational needs.

7. The Immediate Future: Full Interoperability with Stablecoins (2026–2027)

The technical and financial landscape continues to project improvements aimed at optimizing traditional payment systems in terms of time and cost, leveraging fintech and blockchain innovations.

The possibility of moving toward programmable payments, executed via smart contracts integrated into local payment rails, presents an attractive alternative for businesses, offering greater convenience and improved operational efficiency.

Imagine a scenario where, upon confirmation of an imported good’s arrival at customs via a digital system, a smart contract automatically releases the corresponding payment to the international supplier in a stablecoin.

Or that, upon reaching a milestone in a construction project, funds are automatically transferred to subcontractors.

This interoperability, facilitated by fiat-backed stablecoins and enabled by smart contracts, will transform corporate treasury and B2B payments.

Companies will be able not only to transfer value quickly and cost-effectively, but also to execute complex agreements in an automated, efficient, and transparent manner.

8. Automated and Secure Cross-Border B2B Payments Using Stablecoins

Stablecoins backed by fiat currencies or smart contracts offer an efficient alternative for conducting cross-border transactions, reducing operational costs, and ensuring liquidity for businesses.

In a scenario where stablecoin transactions surpassed the combined volume of Visa and Mastercard in 2024, and where annual usage increased by 28% in August 2025, with a total of 208 trillion stablecoins in circulation, the question of whether they will establish themselves as a tool for corporate treasury and B2B payments answers itself.

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The integration of stablecoins with local infrastructures, along with the ability to execute complex agreements via smart contracts, has radically transformed operational efficiency.

CFOs and CTOs must focus on proactive risk management, particularly the risk of depegging through the use of audited stablecoins and the stablecoin sandwich model, as well as security risks through protocols such as multi-sig or multi-signature wallets.

Collaboration with traditional financial institutions and an understanding of the role of central banks in this ecosystem are equally important.

Stablecoins are a key component of the financial infrastructure of the future.

For companies seeking to optimize their capital, accelerate their cash flow, and streamline their global operations, the strategic adoption of stablecoins is the path to greater competitiveness and efficiency in the years ahead.

The key lies in informed implementation and smart integration within existing business processes.

Frequent Asked Questions About Stablecoin Payments

Does stablecoin use crypto rails? 

Yes, stablecoins use crypto rails. Stablecoins move across blockchain networks—such as Solana, Polygon, Ethereum, or Tron—which serve as the settlement infrastructure or "rails" for the transaction.

Can stablecoins be used for cross-border transactions? 

Yes, stablecoins are highly effective for cross-border transactions. Businesses use blockchain infrastructure to move money globally 24/7/365 through stablecoin, allowing cross-border flows to settle in minutes or seconds rather than the 3 to 5 days typically required by traditional correspondent banking networks.

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Disclaimer

This document is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal, financial, tax, or investment advice. Decisions regarding the adoption of stablecoins must be evaluated within the specific context of each company, including risk exposure, applicable regulatory frameworks, and guidance from independent legal advisors.

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