As the stablecoin account becomes obsolete, the crypto becomes a global financial hub
Stablecoins, which are pegged to the value of stable assets such as the US dollar or gold, are part of the global financial system and their account has reached a higher level, said Robert Hackett, head of special projects at a16z crypto.
Hackett said in a report on Friday that the term “stablecoins” was created in the early years of crypto, a time when the definition of a place of wild volatility and symbols to maintain a stable value and encourage their use in daily financial activities.
“The name was straightforward, if a bit defensive: not a volatile coin, but a stable one. It described the problem perfectly. But the technology has since outgrown the label,” he said.
“Stability is now table stakes, a prerequisite, and not the point. The question is no longer ‘will it hold its value?' But ‘what else can we build with it?'” added Hackett.
“That's why the name Statcoin is now obsolete. It still refers to something designed to solve the underlying problem, not the platform it's on. The term frames the category as a patch, not a new primitive.”
Stablecoins have emerged as a key use case for crypto. According to Defilama, the global market has grown to more than $321 billion. Adoption is also expanding across economies as banks and institutions look to use the technology for faster payments and other benefits.
John Palmer, a developer and product consultant, made a similar argument on Thursday and said that “stablecoins probably have 10x the impact of crypto by now and should have a self-explanatory and non-reactive name because calling them “stablecoins” “seems wrong”.
Source: John Palmer
The name of the stable coin remains
Hackett says it's difficult to rebrand a term that better captures the essence of the technology, such as “digital money” or “programmable money.”
Related: Stablecoins Overtake Bitcoin Purchases in Latin America – Bitso
At the same time, he argued that the first word in new technology often sticks, like email, which no longer works like traditional messaging, or horsepower when describing the power of a car engine.
“Stablecoins will probably follow a strange morphological path. The skeuomorphic name may persist long after it ceases to be descriptive. Or it may gradually fade away when we talk about digital dollars, digital euros and other onchain assets,” said Hackett.
Although the technology will completely disappear into the background and how money is made, in the same way that a newly designed device is the default, we stopped the electric light. Now it's just lights.
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