BIS Says Stablecoins Fail to Meet Core Monetary Requirements, Remain 'Niche' Payment Tools

BroadChain learned that at 06:30 on April 21, according to Bitcoinist, Pablo Hernández de Cos, General Manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), stated at a Bank of Japan seminar in Tokyo on Monday that existing stablecoins have failed to meet the requirements for a widely accepted and used payment instrument. He pointed out that the two key characteristics determining the "moneyness" of an instrument are singleness and interoperability. Singleness requires different forms of money to be perfectly substitutable at face value across various financial intermediaries and platforms, which is facilitated by central banks in fiat systems. However, decentralized stablecoins lack a central settlement mechanism, potentially leading to price discrepancies. Interoperability means funds can flow seamlessly across different platforms and networks, but current stablecoins are scattered across numerous blockchains, and even different on-chain versions of the same token are not interoperable by default. These shortcomings undermine the critical network effects of money, meaning stablecoins may remain a "niche" tool under their current design. Although the current stablecoin system may not meet the standards for widespread payments, de Cos acknowledged their potential to enhance cross-border payment efficiency while warning that they could impact credit supply, financial stability, and monetary and fiscal policies. According to DefiLlama data, since the fourth quarter of 2025, the overall digital asset market has faced pressure, but the market capitalization of stablecoins has slightly increased, with the total valuation now exceeding $320 billion, reaching a new all-time high. As of press time, Bitcoin is trading at approximately $75,000, with a weekly increase of over 6%.