Apple And Google Stablecoin Ambitions, J.P. Morgan Crypto Loans & More

Welcome back!

This is J264G and this week I’ve got these titbits for you:

• System Reboot: Stablecoins pursue functional parity & structural innovation. 

• Stablecoin Wave: Apple, Google, Airbnb & Co. weigh stablecoin adoption. 

• Crypto Core: J.P. Morgan considers crypto ETFs as loan collateral. 

Circle’s IPO was less a debut than a declaration. Following Webull and eToro, its listing may well be the canary in the coal mine: fintech is back, stablecoins are no longer fringe, and crypto’s role in reshaping finance is accelerating.

Now, let’s jump right into this week’s newsletter!

Click on any underlined heading/hyperlink to learn more.

Spotlight

System Reboot

As expected, Circle’s blockbuster IPO has drawn out a familiar chorus of sceptics, still unconvinced that stablecoins amount to more than a speculative detour in financial history.

Their argument is straightforward: the current financial system already enables fast and cheap money transfers—stablecoins are not required. FedNow offers real-time settlement. Consumer apps such as Venmo, Cash App, and Zelle enable instant domestic payments. Cross-border services such as Wise and Airwallex have slashed the cost and friction of international transfers. 

Yet, this glosses over the distinction between functional parity and structural innovation.

Stablecoins are not just recreating existing financial services with digital wrappers. They are also enabling new capabilities and expanding financial access in ways that existing infrastructure has long struggled to deliver.

Fintech entrepreneurs frequently cite the complexity of navigating the fragmented global banking landscape as a major constraint on growth and innovation. Establishing global financial services typically requires years of regulatory engagement, bespoke integrations with local banks, and substantial venture capital to cover operational overhead.

Stablecoins offer a way around this. Built on public blockchains, they enable startups to tap into a global settlement infrastructure from the outset. Rather than negotiating access to each jurisdiction’s financial rails, developers can plug into a shared, internet-native value transfer network. The result is a lower barrier to entry, allowing emerging firms to build and scale international financial services with smaller teams and tighter budgets.

Beyond efficiency gains, stablecoins introduce programmability. Transactions can be embedded into smart contracts that execute based on predefined logic—something legacy payment systems were not designed to support. This enables a faster pace of innovation, as developers can create complex financial products that settle automatically, operate continuously, and scale globally. 

Having said that, the impact of stablecoins is not confined to businesses. Their utility is already apparent in emerging markets and politically unstable regions, where access to reliable currency and financial services is limited. 

In countries experiencing significant inflation—such as Argentina, Venezuela, or Turkey—stablecoins are being used as digital substitutes for the U.S. dollar. Unlike physical dollars, which are often scarce or restricted by capital controls, dollar-pegged stablecoins can be accessed by anyone with a mobile phone and an internet connection. This access, while sometimes expensive and technically demanding, nonetheless provides a financial lifeline.

Stablecoins also offer a degree of censorship resistance that traditional banking does not. Transactions on public blockchains cannot be easily frozen, reversed, or blocked by governments or financial institutions. For political dissidents, human rights organisations, and citizens in authoritarian regimes, this property is not theoretical. 

To be clear, stablecoins are not a panacea. Regulatory clarity remains a major hurdle, particularly in developed markets. Onboarding processes are inconsistent. The user experience is often unintuitive. Fraud risks and smart contract vulnerabilities persist. 

But the narrative that stablecoins are a useless solution in search of a problem simply doesn’t hold up to the reality on the ground. The rise of stablecoins is part of a broader shift toward a more modular, decentralised, and programmable financial architecture. This transformation will not happen overnight. But the market’s recent embrace of stablecoins suggests that the industry is moving beyond the question of legitimacy.

The path forward may be gradual, but the direction is set.

Chart Of The Week

News Bites

Stablecoin Wave: Apple, Google, and Airbnb are in early discussions with crypto firms about integrating stablecoins into their platforms, aiming to lower transaction costs and improve cross-border payment efficiency. Uber is reportedly exploring similar solutions for international money transfers. 

Crypto Core: J.P. Morgan plans to allow clients to use crypto ETFs as collateral for loans. The bank will also begin factoring crypto holdings into clients’ net worth assessments—further blurring the line between traditional finance and crypto. 

German Renaissance: Deutsche Bank is examining stablecoins and different forms of tokenised deposits, marking a continued expansion into digital asset services by major European institutions. 

Tokenised Properties: APS Holding S.A. has executed the first institutional purchase of tokenised real estate, acquiring $3.4 million of Italian property via MetaWealth.

Platform Proliferation: A new trading platform—Nova—has launched in private beta on Solana, aiming to compete with incumbents such as Axiom, Photon, and BullX.

Deal Flow

When the Solana ecosystem moves, it moves fast.

We give capital allocators an unfair advantage: high-signal research, due diligence, and warm intros.  

Drop us a line and we’ll be in touch.

Caught In 4K

Weekly Take

Keks & Giggles

And that's a wrap!

You can reach me anytime over on 𝕏.

Talk soon!

J264G

_{DISCLAIMER
None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research. Lastly, please be advised that we discuss products and services from our partners from which our team members may hold tokens/equity.}