According to details provided by Tether, the transaction mechanism involved Hyundai Motor America converting corporate funds into USDT, transferring the digital asset across the blockchain network to Hyundai Motor Mexico, and subsequently converting the stablecoin back into traditional United States dollars. The entire procedural journey—encompassing the transfer itself and the associated verification steps—was completed in approximately seven minutes. By comparison, traditional cross-border bank transfers typically require anywhere from three to four hours, and often significantly longer depending on intermediary banking relationships, correspondent networks, and varying time zones.
The successful proof of concept was built upon multiple collaborative partnerships across the financial and technological sectors. Tether noted that the pilot utilized Axiym’s settlement infrastructure, while Hyundai Card played a critical role by designing the underlying remittance structure. Furthermore, Hyundai Card oversaw the complex array of regulatory, compliance, accounting, and operational requirements that are mandatory to support an enterprise-grade proof of concept of this nature.
The primary objective of the pilot was to evaluate whether stablecoin-based settlement infrastructure could be seamlessly integrated into existing corporate treasury operations without necessitating disruptive alterations to corporate governance, compliance protocols, or established accounting workflows. Building on the success of this initial test, the participating companies plan to expand their testing parameters into additional payment corridors and local currency settlements. This next phase will allow enterprise leaders to more thoroughly evaluate how stablecoins can fit into broader, multi-region enterprise treasury workflows.
Corporate treasury emerges as key stablecoin use case
Corporate treasury management has rapidly emerged as a vital focal point for the broader stablecoin industry. In response to corporate demand for greater efficiency, digital asset firms and infrastructure providers have increasingly rolled out specialized products designed to streamline cross-border payments, optimize liquidity management, and facilitate smoother intercompany settlements.
This corporate integration trend has seen several notable milestones in recent months. In April, treasury management software provider Kyriba partnered with Circle to integrate the USDC stablecoin directly into its enterprise treasury platform. This collaboration was designed to grant corporate treasury teams the capability to manage stablecoin balances alongside conventional cash positions within a unified interface. Through this integration, businesses can settle eligible cross-border and intercompany payments in near-real time, while also gaining access to liquidity outside of traditional banking hours, all while operating within their existing corporate workflows and established internal approval controls.
Empirical data from major digital asset platforms further underscores this accelerating institutional shift. A report published this month by Bitso Business revealed that stablecoin transaction volumes processed on its platform surged by 81% year over year during the first half of 2026. This substantial growth was propelled primarily by enterprise demand for real-time settlement capabilities, sophisticated treasury management tools, and reliable cross-border liquidity solutions. Notably, more than 60% of the new business clients onboarded by Bitso Business during that period comprised traditional financial institutions, including established commercial banks and licensed payment service providers.
Broader business surveys echo these findings, pointing toward a steady rise in enterprise adoption across various commercial sectors. A June report published by Paybis indicated that roughly 22.5% of surveyed businesses either already utilize stablecoins for international commercial payments or actively plan to implement them within the next twelve months. Citing extensive research from McKinsey, the report highlighted that business-to-business transactions accounted for approximately 60% of the estimated $390 billion in global stablecoin payment volume recorded in 2025.
This institutional and corporate push is occurring against the backdrop of a steadily expanding overall stablecoin market. Data from DefiLlama shows that the total market capitalization of the stablecoin sector has climbed to approximately $312.3 billion. This figure represents an increase of roughly 21.5% compared to a market valuation of $257.1 billion just one year earlier, with Tether’s USDT maintaining its position as the largest stablecoin by total market capitalization.
