The Stable Scoop: Illicit crypto tops $154B, Trump pushes for Clarity Act, and Visa goes global with stablecoin payments

Editor - Jackie

🌎 Macro: Illicit crypto hits $154B,Circle’s USDC tops $75B, and the UAE debuts a regulated dirham stablecoin

Illicit crypto hits a 2025 record, with stablecoin rails highlighted in sanctions-linked activity

• Total illicit transaction volume reached a record $154B in 2025, and value received by sanctioned entities jumped more than 690% versus 2024.
• Iran’s IRGC was reported to have sent at least $3B in 2025 to support regional militias, while North Korea was reported to have stolen roughly $2B in 2025.
• Russia’s A7A5 ruble stablecoin was cited as facilitating $93.3B in volume, underscoring stablecoins’ role in sanctions-linked flows.

Circle stock rallies as USDC reaches $75.3B and revenue grows to $770M - Circle shares extended a post-earnings surge as USD Coin (USDC) grew 72% to $75.3B and revenue rose 77% to $770M, with analysts framing it as a bet on stablecoins becoming payments infrastructure.

UAE rolls out dirham stablecoin DDSC on ADI Chain with central bank approval - UAE launched DDSC as a 1:1 dirham-backed token on ADI Chain with central bank licensing, tied to International Holding Company (IHC) and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and positioned for payments and remittances.

LATAM crypto adoption accelerates as Pix apps make USDT payments feel “invisible” - Regional Latin America adoption grew about three times faster than the U.S. last year and was driven mostly by stablecoins, with Pix-connected apps using Tether (USDT) for payments and Peru logging 2.9M+ crypto app downloads in 2025 (+50% year over year).

Study finds AI models pick bitcoin for saving and stablecoins for everyday spending - A study testing 36 artificial intelligence models found bitcoin dominated “store of value” choices, while stablecoins led in payment scenarios, supporting a “bitcoin for savings, stablecoins for spending” split.

Angle to wind down EURA and USDA as euro stablecoin supply collapses - Angle plans to shut down EURA and USDA with an orderly redemption window and no haircut after EURA fell from 180M+ peak supply to under $4M in value, citing overhead and shrinking usage.

Tron’s revenue lead widens as stablecoin-heavy usage makes it one of crypto’s few “profitable” chains - Tron generated $624M in revenue with minimal inflationary cost, while Ethereum and Solana had sizable inflation costs, and Tron’s role as a main stablecoin chain is cited as a key driver.

🔍 Policies:

Kraken wins a Fed master account, opening direct access to core payment rails

• Kraken secured approval for a Federal Reserve master account, which allows regulated depository institutions to hold balances at the central bank and connect to core payment systems.
• Kraken’s co-CEO said the approval should improve reliability and efficiency for moving fiat deposits in and out of digital-asset markets.
• A Fed governor described “skinny” accounts as potentially useful for payments-focused innovation, while Custodia pointed to tokenized deposit and stablecoin market collaborations.

Trump presses Congress to pass Clarity Act after GENIUS, as banks warn about uneven rules

• President Trump urged lawmakers to move on market structure “ASAP,” arguing delays could push the industry offshore and positioning GENIUS as the first step with Clarity as the next.
• Jamie Dimon argued that if crypto firms want to operate like banks, they should become banks, warning that mismatched regulation could destabilize the system.

Bank groups blast Kraken’s Fed access as a risky template for “crypto banks” - Kraken drew backlash after being described as the first “crypto bank” with Federal Reserve master-account approval, with trade groups warning the move could raise risks without traditional oversight and lacked transparency.

Revolut applies for a U.S. bank charter as the OCC pipeline expands in the stablecoin era - Revolut Revolut applied for a new U.S. bank charter as it targets global banking expansion, with the piece linking charters to U.S. stablecoin growth and noting a $75B valuation after a share sale.

FATF flags peer-to-peer stablecoin transfers as a major laundering and sanctions risk - FATF said peer-to-peer stablecoin transfers via unhosted wallets are a top money-laundering and sanctions-evasion risk, and urged issuers to be able to freeze or block deny-listed wallets, citing stablecoins as ~84% of 2025 illicit crypto transactions.

Dimon slams stablecoin rewards push and says bank-like products need bank rules - Jamie Dimon warned the public will “pay” if crypto firms can offer stablecoin rewards under lighter rules, as White House talks sought a March 1 compromise that still looked far apart into March.

Bank lobby escalates fight over “skinny” Fed accounts as stablecoin rewards remain the fault line - Banking banking lobbyists opposed approving a pared-down Federal Reserve account before the Fed finalizes policy, while Kraken pitched the approval as connecting crypto to sovereign rails and the story ties the broader fight to stablecoin rewards.

Garlinghouse backs Trump’s Clarity push as USD1 nears $5B and deposit-flight fears resurface - Brad Ripple Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Brad Garlinghouse backed Trump’s push to pass the Clarity Act, while the piece says World Liberty Financial’s USD1 is near $5B and cites a Standard Chartered warning of up to $500B in deposit flight by 2028 if the bill passes.

US prosecutors seek forfeiture of $327,829 in USDT tied to an alleged romance scam - U.S. prosecutors are seeking civil forfeiture of $327,829 in Tether (USDT) tied to an alleged romance scam, saying the victim’s funds were converted to USDT and wallets were seized in August 2025.

Offline digital euro raises anti-money-laundering worries as Europe moves toward a €10,000 cash cap - A Bank for International Settlements (BIS) authors warned offline digital euro payments could raise anti-money-laundering risk, as the European Union plans a €10,000 cash cap in 2027 and debates how a central bank digital currency differs from private stablecoins.

Reform Party’s crypto donations boost fundraising and keep it Britain’s only crypto-accepting party - Reform reportedly received major crypto-linked donations that helped it raise £5.5M in the fourth quarter, beating the Conservatives and Labour, while being described as the only UK party that accepts crypto donations.

Cardano’s ADA goes live at 137 Swiss Spar stores with merchants paid in francs - Cardano’s ADA payments are now available at 137 Spar stores via QR code, but merchants still receive Swiss francs, and the same rails also support stablecoins like USD Coin (USDC) and Tether (USDT).

Russia drafts a standalone stablecoin bill as officials call the opportunity “colossal” - Russia officials signaled a separate stablecoin law may follow broader crypto exchange rules, saying stablecoins have no legal status today and highlighting A7A5’s approval for overseas trade.

Japan launches a three-month anti-money-laundering pilot that explicitly covers stablecoins - Japan’s Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is backing a three-month pilot to improve information sharing on suspicious wallet addresses across exchanges and stablecoin businesses, with participants including GMO Coin, Bitbank, Chainalysis, Rakuten, Nomura, and Hitachi.

Coinbase urges UK lawmakers to drop Bank of England stablecoin holding caps - Coinbase argued proposed caps would stop sterling stablecoins from scaling as settlement tools for tokenized government bonds, and said full reserves should make “runs” less likely than in traditional banking.

🔥 Biz Beats: Stablecoins plug into legacy giants with Visa cards planned for 175M merchants and Western Union building Solana rails for 200 plus countries

Visa and Stripe-owned Bridge plan stablecoin-linked card rollout across 100+ countries

• The rollout aims to bring stablecoin-linked Visa cards to more than 100 countries by the end of 2026.
• The cards are positioned to let users spend stablecoin balances across Visa’s 175 million merchants worldwide.
• Onchain settlement was described as possible via a pilot involving Lead Bank, as Visa emphasized meeting businesses where they increasingly operate: onchain.

Western Union partners with Crossmint to launch USDPT stablecoin on Solana with cash-out reach

• Western Union and Crossmint are launching USDPT, a U.S. dollar stablecoin on Solana, emphasizing speed and low costs.
• The plan includes conversion through more than 360,000 collection points worldwide and cash pick-up in more than 200 countries.
• Western Union framed the partnership as connecting global wallets and digital platforms to its payments infrastructure.

Ark buys Robinhood and Coinbase shares as Circle remains a top holding - Ark bought about $12M of Robinhood and $4M of Coinbase, and it highlighted Circle as a top-six holding around $370M alongside large existing positions in both brokers.

SoFi and Mastercard plan to use SoFiUSD for settlement across a global payments network - SoFi said SoFiUSD (issued by SoFi Bank on Ethereum) will be used as a settlement currency on Mastercard’s network for use cases like cross-border remittances and business-to-business transfers.

ADI Foundation partners with Chainlink to expand cross-chain stablecoin and tokenization infrastructure - ADI said it will integrate Chainlink tools, including Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP), to support interoperability and add price and reserve transparency features for stablecoins on ADI Chain, including the planned dirham-backed DDSC.

💡Rollouts: Regulated stables accelerate with 12 European banks planning a euro token, USAT attested at $17.6M reserves, and ZeroHash going for OCC oversight

Twelve European banks target a 2026 launch for a regulated euro stablecoin

• A consortium of 12 major European banks is targeting a commercial launch in the second half of 2026 for a euro-backed stablecoin.
• The stablecoin is described as 1:1 euro-pegged, with at least 40% of reserves held in bank deposits and the remainder in high-quality, short-term eurozone sovereign bonds.
• The group said it wants a regulated domestic alternative to U.S. dollar stablecoins and is in discussions so it can be listed and tradable from day one.

Deloitte issues first USAT reserve attestation, showing a ~$100K buffer over supply

• Deloitte produced USAT’s first attestation on behalf of issuer Anchorage Digital, with figures as of Jan. 31 showing $17.6M in reserves versus $17.5M circulating supply.
• The reserves were described as cash and U.S. Treasuries held at U.S.-based financial institutions, leaving a cushion of about $100,000 at the snapshot date.
• The write-up noted the limits of the attestation, including that it did not assess day-to-day reserve management or determine legal/regulatory compliance.

Usual adds virtual IBANs for simpler SEPA euro transfers and direct EUR0 conversion - Usual rolled out virtual International Bank Account Numbers (IBANs) to help users move euros via SEPA and SEPA Instant and convert EUR0 directly into euros, while citing about $114M in total value locked (TVL).

ZeroHash seeks an OCC trust charter for stablecoin management and settlement, not retail banking - ZeroHash applied for a national trust bank charter focused on stablecoin management plus services like settlement and custody, while explicitly excluding retail deposits, lending, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance.

💲Money in motion: This week’s hottest stablecoin industry financing moves!

👋 That’s your stablecoin scoop for the week!

Until next time — AllScale Weekly

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