The marketing version of a stablecoin on-ramp takes three seconds to explain. The plumbing version takes five layers of infrastructure, two different finality regimes, and a 1996 compliance rule that blockchain was never designed to satisfy. This is the plumbing version.
Presentation in which I explore stablecoins beyond narrow banking - and what it would take to reconnect money and credit onchain
Stablecoins appear easy to monetise. They are not. This note looks at the few models that can scale sustainably.
Stablecoins are, in essence, the first large-scale experiment in narrow banking. Every USDC or USDT is (or supposed to be) fully backed by reserves – cash or short-term Treasuries – sitting safely off-chain. This architecture is what makes these tokens stable, but it also sterilizes capital: every dollar deposited creates no new credit, no new economic activity. In contrast, the...
After several years publishing as Fintech Ruminations, I am introducing a new name: Lombard Notes. The change reflects a broader focus, extending beyond fintech to the wider architecture of financial systems — from historical innovations to emerging digital markets. The content remains consistent in spirit, with only the name evolving. A few months ago, in my post Stablecoins 2.0, I suggested...
Circle’s S-1 filing offers a window into the economics of the stablecoin industry.
The post dig deeper into Circle’s current success and explore if the same model can survive a changing financial topology.
Stablecoins, led by Tether (USDT) and USDC, now total $180 billion, with new entrants like yield-bearing stablecoins, PayPal's PYUSD, Agora and M0 trying to disrupt the market.
While USDT and USDC dominate, blockchain’s true potential could lead to disruptive changes in the future of money.
The post imagines what the future of finance will be in 2032. It follows the life of a fictional character - John - and analyses how four major trends redefine his financial life.
What if a crypto currency or a native digital currency becomes the mainstream payment method?
The post investigate the scenario of a digital currency becoming the main mean of payment and its implications on the wider financial ecosystem.