Bank of Italy tests stablecoins for cross-border payments

Banca d’Italia has conducted an extensive study into the use of stablecoins for international transfers. The test shows that in most cases stablecoins come out cheaper than the global average, but the real constraint lies in converting to fiat money and local payment systems.

In brief:

• Italy’s central bank tested 200 stablecoin payments via 10 different international routes.
• In most cases, costs were below the global average, but fiat conversion remained the biggest obstacle.
• According to the study, direct spending without conversion into fiat would significantly increase the advantage of stablecoins.

Stablecoins cheaper, but not without limitations

Banca d’Italia tested a total of 200 transfers via ten different international payment routes, also known as corridors. In most of these corridors, stablecoins perform better than the global average in terms of cost.

What stands out from the research is that the blockchain itself is hardly the problem. Transaction costs on the network are not the bottleneck. It is precisely the steps around the transaction that make it expensive: converting euros into stablecoins and then back into local currency, combined with the operation of local payment infrastructure. In South Korea, too, we have seen an outflow of stablecoins abroad for 18 months, which illustrates the growing international use of stablecoins for payments.

Great potential if fiat conversion falls away

The study concludes that the advantage of stablecoins would be “significantly greater” if recipients could spend the coins directly, without having to convert them into fiat first. As long as that is not possible, part of the cost savings will continue to be lost to that final step in the payment process.

This ties in with a broader trend in the crypto sector. Binance already saw $7 billion in stablecoin outflows in 2026, pointing to a shift in which stablecoins are increasingly being used outside the exchange. The Banca d’Italia research shows that central banks are beginning to take this use seriously and that the technology is promising, provided the surrounding infrastructure keeps up.