Author: Hasan Can Soygök, Founder, Remotify.co
Something shifted in cross-border payments between August 2025 and February 2026. Not a gradual shift either. Three forces collided at once: stablecoins got regulated, real-time payment networks started linking across borders, and legacy infrastructure finally retired.
If you move money internationally for a living, here is what happened and why it matters.
Stablecoins stopped being experimental
The GENIUS Act, signed into law in July 2025, gave the United States its first federal stablecoin framework. That single piece of legislation removed years of regulatory ambiguity. Stablecoin issuers now need 1:1 reserve backing, monthly certification, and full AML/KYC compliance. In return, payment stablecoins are explicitly not securities or commodities.
The industry moved fast after that. Global stablecoin supply passed $300 billion, roughly 10 times the level from five years earlier. In 2025 alone, stablecoins processed over $33 trillion in transactions. That figure surpasses Visa and Mastercard combined.
More importantly for freelancers, the big players started building stablecoin rails specifically for cross-border payouts. Visa launched a USDC payout pilot targeting creators and gig workers. Stripe’s Bridge acquisition went live across 101 countries and partnered with Remote.com for contractor payments. Payoneer announced stablecoin capabilities powered by Bridge in February 2026. Deel added USDC payroll funding and crypto withdrawals through Coinbase.
These are not pilot programs buried in press releases. They are production features reaching millions of workers.
Real-time payment networks are linking up
While stablecoins grabbed headlines, something equally important happened at the infrastructure level. Project Nexus, the BIS initiative to connect domestic instant payment systems, incorporated as a real company in Singapore. Five central banks signed on as founders (India, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand), with Indonesia joining in early 2026. Target go-live is 2026, potentially reaching 1.7 billion people.
Meanwhile, India’s UPI went on a global tear. Cross-border UPI transactions jumped from 37,060 in FY24 to over 755,000 in FY25, a 20x increase. UPI QR payments now work in Singapore, UAE, Nepal, France, and the UK, with a target of 20 countries by 2029.
Brazil’s Pix expanded cross-border too. In December 2025, PagBrasil and Argentina’s COELSA connected 37 Argentine banks to Pix directly. In Southeast Asia, Indonesia’s QRIS recorded 11.8 million cross-border transactions in the first half of 2025 alone.
These systems bypass SWIFT entirely. They settle in seconds, cost a fraction of traditional rails, and they are growing faster than anyone predicted.
SWIFT did not stand still
To its credit, SWIFT responded aggressively. On November 22, 2025, it retired legacy MT payment messages for good. All cross-border payments now use the ISO 20022 MX format. Institutions still clinging to old formats face surcharges starting January 2026.
SWIFT also announced a new retail payments scheme at Sibos 2025, built with 30+ banks across 17 countries. It guarantees upfront fee transparency, full-value delivery with no hidden deductions, and end-to-end visibility. MVP delivery is planned for H1 2026.
On the AI front, SWIFT’s federated learning trials with 12 global banks doubled fraud detection rates across 10 million test transactions. The system shares intelligence without exposing raw data.
The competitive landscape is splitting in two
Deel crossed $1 billion in annual revenue and hit a $17.3 billion valuation. Airwallex reached $1 billion in annualized revenue with $235 billion in transaction volume. Remitly posted its first full year of GAAP profitability. Western Union continued to shrink.
The market is splitting into two tiers. Enterprise platforms like Deel charge $49 per contractor per month and target companies with global workforces. Lightweight tools like Wise charge from 0.33% and target individual transfers. The middle ground, affordable invoicing and payment infrastructure for independent freelancers earning $1,000 to $10,000 monthly, is still wide open.
Freelancers still pay too much
Despite all this progress, the World Bank reports the global average cost of sending $200 remains 6.49%. Sub-Saharan Africa is worst at nearly 9%, and that number went up from the previous year. Digital channels cost 28% less than traditional ones, yet adoption in high-cost corridors remains slow.
That gap between what is possible and what most freelancers experience is the real story. The infrastructure exists to move money across borders in seconds for under 1%. The challenge is getting it into the hands of the people who need it most.
The next 12 months will determine who closes that gap.