How does money move in a digital economy, and who benefits from it? The most visible instrument today to answer that question is the stablecoin, or stable cryptocurrency.
In the United States, stablecoins are often portrayed as a threat to the traditional banking system: policymakers fear deposit flight, the growth of a shadow banking sector, and potential risks to financial stability. In the European Union, however, they have been addressed mainly as a regulatory and political challenge: how to safeguard consumer protection, reinforce the single market, and preserve the international role of the euro. And then there is Latin America, where they are already a daily monetary reality, used for remittances, savings and access to dollars. Spain sits between these three worlds, and that could become a strategic advantage.
“BBVA, CaixaBank and Santander have participated in digital-asset initiatives within the framework of the European banking sector’s efforts to experiment with this new instrument”
There is also a paradox: while in some jurisdictions banks have publicly warned about the risks of stablecoins, the leading Spanish institutions have chosen to explore them. BBVA, CaixaBank and Santander have participated in digital-asset initiatives within the framework of the European banking sector’s efforts to experiment with this new instrument. Why tilt toward what others regard with suspicion?
What are the ‘stablecoins’?
The stablecoins are digital representations of traditional money built on blockchain technology. They are designed to maintain a stable value: one unit of a stablecoin equals one unit of the reference currency (for example, the euro). To achieve this, they are backed by cash or other short‑term liquid assets. They function as digital settlement instruments and offer certain advantages over traditional digital money, such as bank deposits: they operate around the clock, can cross borders in seconds, and integrate into programmable financial applications. Although they employ the same underlying technology often associated with crypto assets (e.g., Bitcoin or Ethereum), they are not speculative instruments or conceived as investments: their purpose is to maintain a one-to-one parity with the reference currency, backed by reserves held by regulated institutions.
“Stablecoins represent a new payments rail and a new layer of settlement, not a separate currency. They already exist and are used.”
While they digitally imitate traditional money, they are not public money like cash or central bank reserves. Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), such as the planned digital euro, constitute a direct financial liability of the central bank. Stablecoins, by contrast, are private financial liabilities (closer to a commercial bank deposit) though backed by a new technology. In that sense, they represent a new payments rail and a new layer of settlement, not a distinct currency. They already exist and are used. Their staying power will depend on whether individuals, businesses and financial entities find them more useful than traditional methods.
Types of money. Source: Andrew Whitworth.
Stablecoins in the real world today
By early 2026, the global volume of stablecoins surpassed $300 billion in circulation. Beyond their use in crypto trading, they are increasingly employed for cross-border settlements, corporate treasury management, and as a bridge between traditional financial institutions and tokenized assets. There is also a macroeconomic dimension: as demand for stablecoins grows, there is a structural demand for short‑term government debt used as backing in reserves. For small and medium-sized enterprises engaged in international trade, they can provide greater certainty and shorter settlement cycles. In tokenized financial markets, where bonds, funds, or other assets are issued on distributed infrastructures, they can become the settlement asset that brings efficiency to the system.
“In Latin America they are used as a practical way to access dollar-denominated value, as a hedge against inflation, and as a channel for sending remittances”
Adoption has been especially notable in Latin America.
Stablecoins in the EU: regulation and market structure
The European Union regulates stablecoins through the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), in force for these instruments since 2024. MiCA creates a clear, comprehensive framework: it classifies stablecoins as “electronic money tokens” (EMT) or “asset-referenced tokens” (ART), depending on the nature of their reserves, alongside other unbacked crypto assets. Issuers of EMTs and ARTs must meet capital, governance, and reserve-management requirements, incorporating consumer-protection and financial-stability safeguards.
One central objective of MiCA is to provide a framework for euro-denominated stablecoins. Today, 98% of the global value of these instruments is denominated in and backed by the U.S. dollar. MiCA introduces limits on the circulation of stablecoins pegged to non-EU currencies and those issued outside the EU. At the same time, the European Central Bank (ECB) is advancing with the development of a digital euro, conceived as a public form of digital money that strengthens the euro’s use in the single market and deepens financial integration.
Both tracks respond to a common concern: to prevent a potential digital dollarization of Europe.
“In Europe, a unique model is aimed for: digital innovation driven by banks, rather than disruption arising from outside the system”
Stablecoins, therefore, do not replace traditional money, but modernize how it circulates. Globally, most issuers have been startups or fintech ecosystem companies, not conventional banks. In Europe, however, there is a different phenomenon, with banks promoting and experimenting with these tools. This points to a unique model: digital innovation driven by banks, rather than disruption arising from outside the system.
Spanish banks and a global market
In this context, Spain holds a unique position. It does not boast the largest native crypto ecosystem in Europe nor major global exchange platforms, but it does have banks that are internationally active, with scale, regulatory compliance capability, and balance sheets large enough to operate under MiCA. Its banking system is concentrated and internationally diversified. Its leading institutions are accustomed to operating in multiple currencies and regulatory frameworks. And, through their presence in Latin America, they are exposed to markets where digital dollars are already part of everyday financial life. That combination may explain why Spanish institutions see stablecoins less as an existential threat and more as a playground for future competitiveness.
For Spanish banks with subsidiaries in Latin America, the strategic question is even more explicit. They operate in high-inflation, multi-currency environments where individuals and small enterprises seek shelter in dollar-denominated assets. If those clients are going to use stablecoins to access digital dollars, institutions face a choice: resist the phenomenon and risk disintermediation, or fold it into their offerings.
‘Stablecoins’ as Spain’s national strategy?
Nevertheless, the opportunity is not without tensions. If innovation remains in the hands of large banks, what space is left for domestic fintechs? Could banking initiatives push out smaller competitors? And beyond concrete projects, does Spain have a national digital-finance strategy comparable to France’s, which has clearly defended its ambitions in the European arena?
Spain possesses structural advantages: solid banks, advanced payment systems, European regulatory backing, and deep links to some of the world’s most dynamic digital money markets. It serves as a bridge between Brussels and Buenos Aires: regulatory certainty at one end, market innovation at the other, with the right institutions at the center. The decision Spain faces is strategic, not technological. The question is whether it can build the ecosystem needed to translate that position into leadership.
