Major stablecoin issuers and payment processors are increasingly launching their own native blockchains to create dedicated environments for stablecoin-based finance. Circle announced its new Layer 1 blockchain, Arc, which will use USDC as the native gas token and feature a built-in stablecoin foreign exchange engine. This move is mirrored by payments giant Stripe, which is partnering with Paradigm to launch Tempo, a high-performance L1 focused on payments.

These developments signify a strategic shift towards vertical integration, allowing issuers to control transaction costs, enhance user experience, and foster ecosystems of stablecoin-native products. The launch of these specialized blockchains, such as the new Dragonfly-backed Codex network, is a direct challenge to the dominance of general-purpose blockchains like Ethereum for payment-related activities. This trend highlights the growing importance of stablecoins as a foundational layer for the future of finance and payments, with companies moving to build the core infrastructure to support this transition.