The stablecoin market, valued at $300 billion, has evolved beyond its initial purpose of facilitating faster global transactions. Now, businesses are exploring the potential uses of these digital dollars.

This shift is driving a new phase of adoption, as companies move beyond basic infrastructure and towards practical applications, according to Chunda McCain, co-founder of Paxos Labs. In a recent interview with CoinDesk, McCain noted that the industry is transitioning from the initial step of adopting stablecoins to the next phase of exploring their uses. Paxos Labs, a subsidiary of Paxos, the New York-based digital asset firm behind popular stablecoins such as PayPal's PYUSD and the Global Dollar, has raised $12 million in a strategic funding round. The funding will be used to develop a 'financial utility stack' that enables companies to integrate digital assets into their products through a single integration.

The Amplify Suite, launched by Paxos Labs, offers a range of tools, including Earn, Borrow, and Mint, which allow companies to integrate tokens into their business and layer on capabilities over time. McCain emphasized that stablecoins have long been considered 'loss leaders' for businesses, but their potential lies in how they are utilized. For instance, payments can be a significant area of cost savings, as merchants typically incur fees of 2-3%, while stablecoin-based payments can reduce these costs and even generate yield on balances held on-chain.

This can effectively turn a cost into revenue. Additionally, the intersection of payments and credit presents novel use cases, such as allowing merchants to access financing based on real-time performance, while earning yield on incoming payments and settling instantly across borders.

However, not every company needs to issue its own stablecoin to capture these benefits. While some companies, like PayPal, have launched branded tokens to control payments and margins, issuing a token requires significant investment in liquidity, compliance, and distribution.

Instead, many firms can integrate existing stablecoins and still benefit from lower costs and added yield. This shift may lack the hype surrounding big firms launching their own tokens, but it has a tangible impact on how businesses operate, as stablecoins begin to reshape margins, unlock credit, and change how money moves globally, particularly in areas where traditional systems are costly or slow.