Walmart and Amazon Are Exploring Issuing Their Own Stablecoins (msn.com) 46
Walmart and Amazon are exploring the possibility of issuing their own stablecoins in the United States, WSJ reported Friday, potentially shifting billions of dollars in transaction volume away from traditional banks and card networks. The retail giants, along with Expedia Group and several airlines, have recently discussed launching corporate stablecoins that would allow them to circumvent the existing payments infrastructure dominated by Visa and Mastercard.
The companies' final decisions hinge on passage of the Genius Act, legislation currently moving through Congress that would establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins. These digital currencies maintain a one-to-one exchange ratio with dollars and are backed by cash or Treasury reserves, offering merchants the potential for faster payment settlement and significantly reduced processing fees compared to traditional card transactions that can take days to clear.
The companies' final decisions hinge on passage of the Genius Act, legislation currently moving through Congress that would establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins. These digital currencies maintain a one-to-one exchange ratio with dollars and are backed by cash or Treasury reserves, offering merchants the potential for faster payment settlement and significantly reduced processing fees compared to traditional card transactions that can take days to clear.
Hell yeah (Score:4, Informative)
Bring back company script. /s
Re:Hell yeah (Score:5, Insightful)
That would, of course, be the Next Step: employees are only paid in company stablecoin, which can only be spent in the company store.
What's old is new again.
Re: Hell yeah (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
With the price of housing and those companies ties to production lines, 'tis a short step to company towns with the twist that they won't be limited to employees since there won't be too many of them. With their size, they can lean on local governments for tax abatements and regulation giveaways for building New and Improved Neighborhoods where rent is paid in their shit coins and groceries delivered by their own delivery trucks and sourced in their distribution systems. Any other companies offering competi
If you think 2008 was bad (Score:2, Insightful)
There's a reason why fiat currency exists and it's not to ruin your fun. It's a little thing called stability.
Re: (Score:2)
There's a reason why fiat currency exists and it's not to ruin your fun. It's a little thing called stability.
Stablecoins have their value pegged to fiat currency. That's why they're called stable. Its not about speculation, it's about an alternative to exchange mechanisms like VISA, Matercard, PayPal, etc.
Re: (Score:3)
good foundations, but what happens at scale? how trustworthy are the custodians of stable coins to maintain solvency? if you create a stable coin, and back it with treasuries, which the idea is they are completely safe, right? but what if treasuries become not safe.
just as bank notes were the first abstraction from gold, it seems like this is an abstraction from fiat. bank notes issued against gold had similar governance issues; who verified the gold deposits and that banks couldnt just print more certifica
Re: If you think 2008 was bad (Score:2)
Is the status quo even adequate? Not only are we in a position where basically two companies get to tell you whether you can accept payments at all if they determine that your business isn't socially acceptable, but they also gouge you pretty good just because they can.
This is a problem that is definitely in want of a solution. Cryptocurrency does seem like a viable solution. We've seen a few hiccups with it over the years, but I don't know of any technology that hasn't gone through such a period.
And I get
Re: (Score:2)
And when the people with gold or actual things to trade don't want your magic strings of numbers? Then what?
You mean like a barter economy? Those have never existed in any meaningful scale or duration. You'll see them briefly, like when a central bank becomes insolvent, or on the occasional one-off transaction, but that's about it. The scenario you're contriving here would also mean the US dollar becomes worthless, and for the exact same reason.
What will you do when someone else creates their own magical string of numbers? ;)
Numbers are infinite by definition. Anyone can make a new crypto and people can stop using the old ones any time they like. Best get your Trumpcoins now while they're cheap. Only one crypto will be backed by the force of the US military
All fiat currencies are only worth whatever you think they're worth.
Re: (Score:3)
"Stablecoin" is just a euphemism for depositing money with X Corp. Except if you say "depositing" there are all kinds of pesky regulations. So they called them "gift cards." But there's a holdout group that thinks it's weird and maybe a bit dangerous to buy gift cards as an intermediate step between real money and shopping. But stable coins are this sexy freedom-loving amazing technology of the future and totally not a gift card, right?
Re: (Score:2)
This happens periodically but because most stable coins are used for money laundering nobody really cares. If they start being used as integral parts of our economy it's going to destroy everything. It's going to b
Re: If you think 2008 was bad (Score:2)
Re: If you think 2008 was bad (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
There's a reason why fiat currency exists and it's not to ruin your fun. It's a little thing called stability.
Stablecoins have their value pegged to fiat currency. That's why they're called stable. Its not about speculation, it's about an alternative to exchange mechanisms like VISA, Matercard, PayPal, etc.
A mega-corp is considering adopting alternative currency due to monopoly control over transaction fees because a society is addicted to plastic money.
Tell me again how “stable” that bullshit justification is to adopt alternative currency.
Hahaha ha... (Score:2)
There is a vast amount of information online to describe how stable coins hide the fact that they aren't actually backed by the currency. They are pegged that is not the same as being backed. It's like having a bank. If there's a run on the bank the bank collapses. But there's no FDIC insurance for your dumb "stable" coin.
And no it's not about alternatives to Visa or mastercard. It's about money laundering. If you want it alternatives to the big pay
Re: (Score:2)
The reason fiat currency exists is so that the issuer can make a profit by devaluing the currency. See also "inflation".
And is different from gift cards (Score:2, Insightful)
how?
Re: (Score:2)
Some state laws require companies to allow gift cards to be exchanged for cash. Renaming something doesn't automatically get you out of laws, though. It depends heavily on how the wording in the laws actually describe gift cards because they always define any terms.
Re: And is different from gift cards (Score:2)
Could not happen to nicer people... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Could not happen to nicer people... (Score:5, Informative)
It's already been tried. In 2023 S. 1838 was introduced by Senator Durbin and from what I recall the credit card companies launched a huge political campaign against it. Even Forbes (spit) had an article on it. The argument against it was that it would lead to "reduced rewards" and somehow harm consumer security. We all know that that "1% cash back reward" is actually the credit card company charging the merchant a processing fee of like 3%, then tossing 1% back to the card holder. As a result, many places just tack on a 3% surcharge if you're using a credit card, but most just tack it onto the price regardless so even people who pay in cash or by check get to eat the cost too. Remember, surcharges like this aren't paid by the business, they're paid by the consumer. That also means that it's in the customer's interest to pay with the credit card, but then at least they're only getting nailed by 2% instead of 3%.
From what I remember, that bill was introduced to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, where it was killed.
THRILLHO (Score:2)
Re: THRILLHO (Score:2)
Monopoly (Score:3)
Visa and MasterCard do not compete with each other. They collude, and are effectively a monopoly.
If it takes issuing a corporate currency to break the mobopy, go for it.
Re:Monopoly (Score:4, Informative)
They effectively collude. They don't actually have to talk to each other to accomplish this. Whatever Company A does, Company B knows they can get away with so they'll do it.
Since they have plausible deniability already, it doesn't necessarily matter if they are secretly directly talking to each other. Nobody is likely to prove it.
Horrible idea (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
why should circle have the monopoly on stable coins?
Re: Horrible idea (Score:1)
Of Course (Score:4, Insightful)
Now that it's ok for the grifter in chief it's ok for corporate America.
Sounds like a deal (Score:3)
Re: Sounds like a deal (Score:2)
Really? (Score:2)
Why don't they just take the leap and develop their own alternative to Visa and Mastercard? Or there are these things called gift cards you know. But hey, anything to justify another $hitcoin. Maybe I should go out and buy some new Trump Bucks or whatever it's called. Maybe gift cards?
Here's an idea. If I have $1000 in USD and inflation is 2.5%/year, I effectively lose 2.5% buying power every year to inflation. If I put that in something that is inflation-adjusted (the typical example is gold but that isn't
Re: Really? (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3)
Did you know you can buy inflation-adjusted treasuries?
treasurydirect.gov
Re: (Score:3)
Walmart and Amazon could *easily* and *legally* issue their own currency without dipping into crypto currency. They will need to create a separate company and register it as either a Financial Institution (to make loans), or as a Non-Bank Financial Institution. Or easiest way: BUY an EXISTING SMALL BANK that already does multi-currency accounts.
The new currency needs a name (including nicknames) different from existing currencies: Dollar, buck, greenback, Yen, Yuan, Euro, Peso, etc. are bad; Amazos, Wams
Stablecoin vs Gift Cards (Score:2)
I mean they and many others already have their own stable coin. It's called a gift card.
Walmart too lax on security to be allowed? (Score:4, Interesting)
https://archive.ph/nP43H [archive.ph]
From the article.
"The FTC sued Walmart in 2022, alleging it “turned a blind eye” as criminals took advantage of its money transfer service. Walmart, the FTC claimed, pocketed millions in fees while “letting fraudsters fleece its customers.” Summarizing the FTC’s evidence, a federal judge in the case wrote that “Walmart knew that its services were used by fraudsters” and that the company was repeatedly warned about certain stores where “twenty-five, fifty, or even seventy-five percent of money transfer activity was fraudulent.” Separately, a federal grand jury in Pennsylvania is hearing evidence of possible criminal conduct in Walmart’s money transfer business, according to corporate filings that did not detail the allegations."
"Not only is Walmart continuing practices that ease the way for fraudsters, its previous failings go deeper than the government has alleged, ProPublica found. Its long record of spotty training and compliance, and its refusal to take responsibility for the fraud perpetrated using its systems, cast doubt on its ability to run a sprawling financial business, experts and current and former Walmart employees said."
COOL! (Score:2)
Now maybe I can unload all this Flooz!
They want the right to print money (Score:2)
And at that piont, they should get regulated into the ground. Obviously, the deeply criminal administration in the white house is not going to do that, to everybodies detriment.
Stablecoins pegged to the Dollar (Score:2)
corporate coins (Score:2)
Casino Chips (Score:1)
Consider the casino chip. It is effectively a stable coin. A chip has a face value and can be traded into the casino at any time for that face value, with no transaction costs. Casino chips can be bought, sold, traded, used in a transaction within the casino, etc. In virtually every practical sense, it is a private currency.
However, a casino is required by law to have enough cash on hand, within the casino, to cover every single casino chip it has. It can't be off in a bank somewhere. It has to be in the ca
Why not FedNow? (Score:2)