The Rise of Stablecoin Chains: Plasma, Arc, Tempo & Stable#
Stablecoins have quietly become the backbone of the crypto economy. They move more money than most other crypto assets every day, yet many people still think of them as just “tokens”. In fact, even JPMorgan Chase & Co. recently launched its own blockchain-based dollar deposit token for institutional clients. Whenever you trade, bridge, or pay someone in crypto, chances are you’re using a stablecoin like USDT or USDC, the digital equivalent of a dollar, as the denominator most of the time.
But recently, something new has started to form around them. Instead of just living on blockchains, stablecoins are beginning to have blockchains built for them. These are called stablecoin chains, a new class of Layer-1 networks designed around the needs of stable assets, not speculative tokens.
This shift might seem subtle, but it could completely redefine how money moves online. Let’s unpack it.
From Tokens to Native Money#
In the early days of crypto, stablecoins were simply tokens deployed on existing chains like Ethereum or Tron. They used those networks’ block space and gas models, which meant that to send USDC, you still needed to hold ETH for fees, and you competed for block space with NFTs, memecoins, and DeFi bots.
That approach worked fine when usage was small. But as stablecoins exploded to over $160 billion in circulation and became the main medium of exchange in Web3, these inefficiencies started to show. High fees, network congestion, and complex user flows made stablecoin payments less practical for real-world transactions. Enter stablecoin chains: networks where the stablecoin is no longer just a guest, it’s the host.
These blockchains make stablecoins the native gas and settlement token, meaning users can transact, pay fees, and build apps all in stable currency. It’s the digital equivalent of using dollars to pay for everything, including the cost of moving those dollars.
Plasma: Stablecoin Speed, Bitcoin Security#
One of the first projects to fully embrace this model is Plasma, a chain purpose-built for stablecoin transfers. Plasma takes an interesting hybrid approach: it anchors its network state to Bitcoin, effectively borrowing Bitcoin’s security while offering high-speed, zero-fee transactions for USDT and other stablecoins.
In practice, that means sending a dollar-backed token on Plasma could cost nothing, settle instantly, and still inherit Bitcoin’s finality guarantees. Its architecture supports EVM-compatible smart contracts, so developers can still deploy dApps, but the focus is crystal clear: make stablecoin transfers feel like sending a text message.
In a way, Plasma represents the “payments layer” Bitcoin never had: the stable, fast rail for dollar-denominated crypto activity.
Arc: Circle’s Native Home for USDC#
If Plasma builds from the bottom up, Arc comes from the top down. Developed by Circle, the company behind USDC, Arc is an open Layer-1 blockchain designed to institutionalize stablecoin finance.
Arc treats USDC not as a token added later, but as the chain’s native currency. Every transaction, smart contract, and cross-currency exchange runs through stablecoins by design. The network also integrates compliance tools and an FX engine that allows for near-instant conversion between different fiat-backed stablecoins. Think USD, EUR, or GBP equivalents, all settled on-chain.
The ambition here is huge. Arc isn’t targeting degens or meme traders. It’s targeting banks, fintechs, and enterprises that want blockchain speed without blockchain chaos. Circle has positioned it as the “financial-grade infrastructure for the internet of value.”
Band also integrates with Arc to power "the Future of Stablecoin Chain Through Open-Source and Multi-Oracle Innovation". Read the full article here: https://blog.bandprotocol.com/band-x-arc-testnet/
Tempo: Stripe’s Push for Real Payments#
Another player entering the stablecoin arena is Tempo, a high-performance blockchain developed by Stripe with backing from Paradigm. Unlike Arc, which leans toward enterprise finance, Tempo focuses on payments in motion, remittances, merchant transactions, and everyday digital spending.
Tempo’s design aims for sub-second finality and throughput north of 100,000 transactions per second, rivaling modern card networks like Visa and Mastercard. More importantly, Stripe’s global payment infrastructure means it could integrate stablecoin payments directly into the checkout experience of millions of merchants worldwide.
Imagine paying for a coffee online with USDC or USDT, without worrying about wallets or gas. That’s the kind of UX Tempo is chasing. In this sense, Tempo represents the convergence of fintech and crypto: a blockchain where stablecoins are not an experiment, but a user-facing payment tool.
Stable: The First True “Stablechain”#
Then there’s Stable, often described as the world’s first “Stablechain”, by Bitfinex and USDT0. It takes the stablecoin-native concept all the way which is by using USDT itself is the gas token.
On Stable, users don’t need to juggle tokens or swap assets to cover fees. Every transaction, contract deployment, or dApp interaction is powered directly by the same stablecoin you’re sending. It’s simple, intuitive, and deeply practical for new users.
Because Tether’s USDT is already the most widely circulated stablecoin in the world, Stable has a built-in liquidity advantage. Developers can build payment apps, wallets, and DeFi primitives without worrying about onboarding friction or volatile gas costs. If Plasma is the “stablecoin speed layer” and Arc is the “enterprise stablecoin layer,” then Stable is the “everyday money layer.”
Why Stablecoin Chains Matter#
These a few example projects represent a turning point for crypto infrastructure. There are a lot more out there with different offerings. For years, stablecoins relied on external blockchains that were never designed for payments. Now, the rails are being rebuilt from the ground up, tailored for speed, stability, and trust.
Stablecoin chains flip the script: instead of adapting stablecoins to fit blockchains, they adapt blockchains to fit stablecoins. That has massive implications for usability, regulation, and mainstream adoption. For developers, it opens new possibilities for real-world use cases, on-chain FX, global payroll, tokenized banking, or embedded finance, all powered by stable, low-cost digital cash. For end users, it finally delivers the promise of crypto payments that just work.
And for a web3 data layer like Band, it reinforces the growing importance of reliable, real-world data. Band feeds and secure stablecoin price to almost every chain that's connected with us. As stablecoin chains evolve into financial networks, oracles become the trust layer, ensuring that exchange rates, collateral ratios, and external data remain transparent and tamper-proof across ecosystems.
If you are a developer who need secure stablecoin price on your dApps when you start out, feel free to reach out to us via: https://www.bandprotocol.com/contact-us
The Bottom Line#
Stablecoins started as a convenience feature, a way to bring stability into a volatile market. But as they’ve grown into a trillion-dollar payment layer, the infrastructure beneath them had to evolve too.
Plasma, Arc, Tempo, and Stable are not just new chains. They’re the first signs of a structural shift. Money is getting its own blockchains, and those blockchains are being designed for the real world: fast, compliant, stable, and borderless.
In a few years, when you send digital dollars across the internet, it might not happen on Ethereum or Solana. It might happen on a stablecoin chain.
And you might not even realize it.
