THE Philippines could see wider adoption of stablecoins as the trust gap among Filipinos presents opportunities to boost consumer awareness and understanding of cryptocurrencies, according to an executive of Visa Inc.
In a news briefing last Thursday, Visa’s Direct Head for Regional Southeast Asia Qinwen Xiao said the low level of awareness or trust in stablecoins provides an opportunity for market practitioners, government, the central bank, payment networks and banks to improve the usage of this type of cryptocurrency.
Xiao explained that stablecoins are designed to keep a steady value by being pegged to a fiat currency such as the US dollar. These tokens have increasingly been used by fintechs and remittance providers to lower the cost and shorten settlement time of cross-border transfers, documents provided by Visa read.
‘We do see, globally, financial institutions are seeing the benefit. They are discussing and exploring a stablecoin initiative with Visa,’ Xiao said.
According to Visa’s ‘Money Travels: 2026 Digital Remittances Adoption’ report, 42 percent of Filipino respondents have little awareness of stablecoins.
Trust in stablecoin transfers is also lower at 38 percent compared to cash remittances at 81 percent, as well as digital remittances at 79 percent.
Visa said this trust gap could expand consumer awareness of stablecoins and digital currencies, as 79 percent of Filipinos said they want more education around stablecoins and how they work.
‘This really opens up an opportunity for the market practitioners to really help educate and increase their awareness of what a stablecoin is in the Philippines,’ Xiao said.
Citing Visa’s report, 72 percent of Filipinos send or receive money multiple times a year while about 35 percent send or receive money once a month.
The Philippines emerged as the top receiver-led market among key markets surveyed, including Australia, Mainland China, Japan, India and Singapore.
Digital transfers are seen as the fastest remittance options, with mobile wallets identified as the top transfer method for speed when using this channel.
Digital transfers directly to a bank account come second (31 percent) followed by debit or credit cards on apps or websites (20 percent).