Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Stablecoins Split Into Issuance And Service Layers
Apr 16, 2026 | NCFA Insight | Digital Assets, Payments And Capital Markets
Issuance and Access Define Market Split
On Apr 8 2026, six Swiss banks launched a CHF stablecoin sandbox while Circle launched managed stablecoin settlement for banks and PSPs. These two announcements, among others, point to a cleaner reading of where this market is going. Banks are working on issuance. Fintech infrastructure firms are working on access. The split is easier to see once the numbers sit side by side.
The Swiss sandbox brings together UBS, PostFinance, Sygnum, Raiffeisen, Zürcher Kantonalbank, BCV, and Swiss Stablecoin AG to test Swiss franc use cases in 2026. The PostFinance release says there is currently no regulated Swiss franc stablecoin with broad application in Switzerland.
See: SoFi Technologies Stablecoin Infrastructure Launch
In contract, Circle isn't issuing a new domestic currency token. It is packaging an operating layer around existing stablecoin rails. Circle says its product supports payouts across more than 20 blockchains and domestic payment rails, and says USDC has supported more than $70T in cumulative onchain settlement with nearly $12T in onchain transaction volume in Q4 2025.
Two Models Are Taking Shape
The bank model starts with control. Domestic institutions want local currency stablecoins because settlement authority, liquidity, and currency relevance are all aligned. That's why the Swiss consortium is testing a franc token inside a controlled sandbox instead of waiting for private dollar stablecoins to define the market for them. A growing banking stablecoin push is already forming elsewhere. Reuters reported that about 10 European banks and a separate group of about 10 large US banks are also exploring issuance and settlement models.
The fintech infrastructure model starts with speed. It assumes many banks and PSPs want the benefits of stablecoin settlement but don't want to manage wallets and blockchain operations, or carry direct digital asset complexity inside their own stack. Circle is selling that infrastructure solution. “With CPN Managed Payments, we’re simplifying how institutions adopt and scale stablecoin payments,” said Nikhil Chandhok, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Circle. They are competing by making stablecoin settlement easier to deploy.
The competitive edge is arguably no longer just about issuing a token, but how quickly a firm can connect stablecoin settlement to real payment and treasury workflows. That's where the rubber hits the road with the service layer.
Circle's Q4 2025 financial filing shows 55 institutions onboarded and another 74 under review as of Feb 20 2026. 2.3M daily transactions over the prior 30 days, roughly half second transaction finality in testing, and more than 166M transactions since testnet launch. It's scaling this network rapidly for institutions that want to plug into settlement, liquidity, and payout rails quickly, and for those who don't want to write the next stablecoin white paper. Stablecoins can support faster securities settlement, collateral movement, repo style liquidity flows, and continuous treasury operations.
See: Wirex And Crossmint Launch Integrated Stablecoin Card Stack
If banks control issuance while infrastructure firms control access, then the market starts to resemble other parts of finance where different firms control different layers of the stack. One layer anchors the money. Another layer controls routing, integration, and speed.
Canada vs United States Stablecoin Approach
Canada now has a published federal stablecoin framework. On Mar 31 2026, Finance Canada set out a model for fiat backed stablecoins under Bank of Canada oversight, including issuer registration, 1:1 reserves, at par redemption, and governance, security, and recovery standards. The same page says the framework is expected to come into force in 2027 after regulations are developed.
The US is moving on two tracks at once. It's developing a federal payment stablecoin rulebook through the FDIC’s proposed GENIUS Act rule, and it already has a charter pathway through the OCC’s conditional approvals for five national trust banks. That means the US debate covers both issuer rules and institutional access to banking infrastructure.
Canada's now more comparable with the US on issuer oversight, but it still doesn't have an equivalent crypto specific trust charter path into the federal banking perimeter. That leaves a real difference in how companies scale, partner, and position themselves with institutional clients.
Talking Point
Stablecoins are splitting into two businesses. Banks want to issue regulated digital money. Fintech infrastructure firms want to make that money usable inside payment and settlement workflows.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
Leave a Reply