Stablecoin adoption intent surges when consumers get bank-level protections, research shows

The stablecoin market has a trust problem, and the solution turns out to be remarkably old-fashioned. Research into consumer attitudes toward stablecoins consistently reveals the same pattern: offer people the speed and convenience of blockchain-based dollars, wrap them in the kind of protections they expect from a checking account, and adoption intent climbs dramatically.

The finding lands at a moment when the infrastructure to deliver on that promise is scaling faster than almost anyone predicted. Visa now reports $20 billion in annualized stablecoin settlement volume, a 15-fold increase year-over-year, with over 160 stablecoin-linked card programs operating globally.

The protection premium

Consumer research conducted by FIS in November 2025 put hard numbers on something the industry had long suspected. Roughly 74.8% of US respondents said they would consider using stablecoin services offered by their primary bank. Fewer than 4% expressed willingness to try unregulated alternatives.

The same FIS research found that 66.3% of consumers said FDIC-style insurance would increase their likelihood of using stablecoins.

Visa’s stablecoin bet is paying off

Payment volumes across Visa’s stablecoin-linked card programs surged nearly 200% year-over-year. The company now operates these programs in over 100 markets globally.

Visa’s own onchain analytics data shows retail-sized stablecoin transfers, those under $250, grew from $0.5 billion in 2019 to $69.8 billion in 2025.

The $20 billion annualized settlement figure puts Visa’s stablecoin operation in the same ballpark as some mid-sized national payment networks.

The GENIUS Act changed the calculus

Much of this acceleration traces back to a single piece of legislation. The GENIUS Act was signed into law on July 18, 2025, establishing the first comprehensive federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins in the US.

The law introduced stringent reserve mandates, requiring issuers to back their tokens with high-quality liquid assets. It also created consumer protection rules that brought stablecoins closer to the regulatory treatment of bank deposits, without technically making them deposits.

The FIS survey data showing 74.8% consumer interest in bank-offered stablecoin services arrived just months after the law passed, capturing a sentiment shift that regulatory clarity had unlocked.

What this means for the stablecoin market

Circle and Tether, the two dominant stablecoin issuers, face different strategic pressures under this new reality. Circle’s USDC, with its emphasis on regulatory compliance and banking partnerships, appears better positioned for the bank-integrated future that consumer surveys describe. Tether’s USDT, which commands the larger market share but has faced persistent questions about reserve transparency, may need to adapt.