Payments
The Cost of a Cross-Border Payment Is Not the Fee
A transfer crosses four institutions before it is usable, and the conversion spread costs more than the wire fee everyone argues about. Where the money actually goes.
Kate Swift
Kate writes on Stablegate's stablecoin settlement infrastructure and how banks are adapting to on-chain rails.
News
Europe tied stablecoin issuers to banks for safety. Its central banks now call that the risk
In its MiCAR consultation response the ESCB asks Brussels to delete the minimum bank-deposit share for stablecoin reserves. The anchor meant to make issuers safe turned out to be the wire that carries a run into the banking system.
Payments
The Bank Decides in a Day. Replacing It Takes Months.
A banking relationship can end in a day and take months to replace, with no explanation owed. What that asymmetry costs, and what redundancy means in practice.
Payments
Who Answers the Bank's Questions When You Buy Property With Crypto
Crypto-funded property deals stall when the bank's question about source of funds arrives late and nobody prepared the answer. Who handles it, and when.
Payments
Luxury Buyers and Crypto: Where the Money Is Going in 2026
HNWI wealth reached USD 98.3 trillion, yet alternatives fell to 12% of portfolios while two in three holders want more. Where that gap leads.
News
In our settlement operation, an AI agent looks at a payment before any person does
We wrote about what that means for a family office. The piece is out in Private Wealth Voices, the Prestel & Partner magazine. The argument comes in three parts: 1. The routine has already moved to machines. Monitoring, reconciliation, routing, the compliance check that runs before the money leaves rather
Payments
What Actually Happens When a Property Is Bought With Crypto
A contract is signed on a house. The price is agreed, the closing date is written into the deed, and the buyer's money is sitting in stablecoins. Both sides treat the financing question as settled. It is not settled. The difficult part of the transaction lives in the
Stablecoins
Where Stablecoin Payments Actually Slow Down
In 2024, stablecoin transfer volumes reached a scale that invites an easy conclusion - that crypto rails have overtaken the banking system. The volume numbers are real and worth reading closely. The conclusion usually drawn from them is not. Most of that turnover never leaves the crypto perimeter, and the