Stripe has announced it will allow customers to accept cryptocurrency payments on its platform. It will start this Summer with USDC on Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon, showing a demo of crypto payments using Solana at their developer conference. Stripe previously supported Bitcoin in 2014 but halted crypto efforts in 2018, citing its use as a store of value instead of as a medium of exchange. It processed $1 trillion in payments in 2023.
Aave's high APY of over 17% for lending USDC is driven by strong demand to borrow USDC. Using Aave requires depositing collateral (like ETH), borrowing against it, and paying interest, which is distributed to lenders. Aave is managed by blockchain smart contracts for transparency and reduced risk.
Solana is rapidly emerging as a leader in stablecoins and real-world assets (RWAs), positioning itself as a key player in merging traditional finance with onchain economies. With robust stablecoin growth, particularly in USDC, and innovative RWA projects like Maple and Parcl, Solana is expanding its ecosystem to attract both retail and institutional capital. Solana is set to further solidify its place in the tokenization of real-world assets through initiatives like the Libre Fund and Jupiter's GUM Alliance aimed at driving adoption and reinforcing its position in the market.
The stolen ETH (~$10M) has been returned, with the USDC expected to follow later today, thanks to vigilant white hats who will receive a $500K bounty. The Ronin bridge will remain closed pending an audit, with plans to transition its operations to a new structure in collaboration with Ronin validators.
Circle has partnered with Sony Block Solutions Labs to integrate Bridged USDC on the Soneium blockchain, enhancing its use as a primary token for secure, borderless transactions. This collaboration aims to empower creators in the digital economy, leveraging decentralized technologies to drive innovation and global accessibility on Soneium, a versatile Ethereum layer 2 platform.
USDC is now accessible in Brazil and Mexico through local real-time payment systems, significantly expediting transactions with local currencies and integrating digital dollars into TradFi operations.