As dollar-backed stablecoins became more prevalent in daily transactions like groceries, ride-hailing, and meal delivery, cryptocurrency card spending more than quadrupled over the previous year, hitting $1.04 billion in July. According to Paymentscan statistics given by venture capital company a16z, over 10 million monitored transactions were logged, with stablecoins supporting over 70% of them.
USDC accounted for 50.8% of July volume, while USDT contributed another 20.3%. The growth suggests stablecoins are becoming a practical way to spend digital dollars, rather than being used only for trading or moving money across borders.
Additionally, according to Paymentscan statistics, the typical card payment rose from $59 a year earlier to almost $86 in July. July 2025 had a monthly volume of $306 million, however August data is still lacking.
Crypto cards are helping drive this change. They allow users to spend stablecoins through familiar payment networks without asking merchants to accept crypto directly. Depending on the card, users may deposit funds with the issuer or spend from a self-custody wallet. The crypto is converted at checkout, while the merchant receives payment in local currency.
In other words, stablecoins are not necessarily replacing payment networks such as Visa or Mastercard. Instead, they are increasingly becoming another source of funds for cards operating on those networks.
Visa said in June that more than 160 stablecoin-linked card programmes were either live or in development around the world. StraitsX, a Visa partner that helps crypto companies launch cards, reported that transaction volume on its infrastructure increased 40-fold between the fourth quarters of 2024 and 2025.
There are, however, some important limitations to the data. The tracked market is heavily concentrated among a few platforms. RedotPay generated $395.1 million of July volume, followed by EtherFi with $100.3 million and KAST with $89.6 million. Together, they represented about 77% of the tracked total.
RedotPay’s figures are self-reported rather than directly observed onchain. Ether.fi CEO Mike Silagadze said its reported volume represented card purchases and did not include around $30 million in fiat transfers.
The stronger evidence of adoption comes from what people are actually buying. In Latin America, Oobit said Brazilian users spend around $400 across 20 transactions each month, with grocery stores accounting for 35% of reported regional activity. In Argentina, 72% of Oobit’s payments used USDT, while food made up 41% of transactions.
Binance has also seen growing usage of its card in Brazil. Between the debut quarter and the second quarter of 2026, the exchange reported an 80% rise in average transaction volume and a 53% increase in average users. The most popular uses were online subscriptions, groceries, restaurants, ride-hailing, and food delivery.
Kraken reported a similar trend. Its Krak Card recorded more than twice as many weekly payments per user over the past year, reaching 8.3. Retail and store purchases accounted for nearly 60% of spending.
The numbers suggest that stablecoins are slowly moving beyond their traditional role in crypto markets. For many users, especially in countries facing inflation or expensive cross-border payments, they are increasingly becoming a convenient way to hold digital dollars and pay for ordinary things.
JUST IN: Crypto card spending hits $1B in July 2026, with stablecoins powering 70%+ of everyday buys. pic.twitter.com/CTi14kBOUF
— Whale Insider (@WhaleInsider) August 23, 2026
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