In a significant move, Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has begun offering payouts in stablecoins to its creators, marking a renewed foray into cryptocurrency-based payments after previously abandoning its Libra project. This feature is currently limited to a select group of creators in Colombia and the Philippines, as per information available on Meta's website.
Eligible creators can link their cryptocurrency wallets to receive payouts in USDC, a stablecoin issued by Circle, on the Solana or Polygon blockchain networks. This initiative is supported by Stripe, a leading payments firm, which will handle crypto-related reporting for users.
As a result, creators may receive tax documents from both Meta and Stripe related to their earnings and digital asset transactions. A spokesperson from Stripe has confirmed the company's involvement in this project. Jay Shah, the head of Link at Stripe, stated, 'Businesses can now make stablecoin payouts directly to customers using Link.
We are already collaborating with Meta to enable their creators to receive stablecoins in their Link wallets in countries such as the Philippines and Colombia.' This development follows Meta's earlier efforts to engage third-party vendors for administering stablecoin payments on its platforms, with Stripe being a prominent contender for this integration. By embracing stablecoins for real-world payments, Meta joins the ranks of large tech firms leveraging blockchain technology to facilitate global money transfers without relying on traditional banking systems. The growing popularity of stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of fiat currencies, is driven by their potential to offer faster and cheaper payment solutions. For instance, Visa has reported that its stablecoin settlement network has achieved an annualized transaction volume of $7 billion, representing a 50% growth over the previous quarter.
This move marks Meta's re-entry into the stablecoin space after its previous attempt to launch the Libra token, later renamed Diem, which was ultimately shut down in 2022 due to regulatory scrutiny.