Transfers in stablecoins were 84% cheaper than traditional bank Swifts – Borderless.xyz report
The global cross-border payments industry is facing another fundamental shift: according to a recent analytical report from the fintech platform Borderless.xyz, digital dollar transactions cost users an average of 84% less than classic interbank transfers via the SWIFT network. Against the backdrop of the growing popularity of digital assets, this gap has finally cemented the dominance of blockchain technologies in international trade.
Why does SWIFT lose to blockchain in speed and price?
Traditional fiat transfers involve a chain of intermediaries, each of whom retains fees for payment processing, currency conversion, and compliance checks. As a result, the total losses of businesses and individuals when sending funds abroad often reach 3-7% of the transaction amount. At the same time:
- Settlements on second-layer (L2) networks for USDT and USDC reduce network costs to fractions of a cent.
- The absence of correspondent banks eliminates hidden write-offs.
- Transaction execution time has been reduced from 3-5 business days to several seconds.
Analysts emphasize that the key driver of savings was precisely the commissions for transfers in stablecoins in 2026, which, due to the optimization of the blockchain infrastructure, fell to a historical minimum.
How is the market reacting to the 84% savings?
The corporate sector and small businesses are increasingly restructuring capital logistics. If a few years ago blockchain payments were perceived as a niche tool for crypto enthusiasts, today CFOs of international companies use stablecoins to close invoices directly. Financial regulators are also changing their rhetoric, with the adoption of laws to legalize stablecoins accelerating in key jurisdictions.
However, experts urge to take into account the associated risks, including the volatility of commissions during periods of extreme overload of the underlying networks (Ethereum, Solana), as well as the procedure for converting digital assets into fiat at the final points of the route. However, the trend is obvious: traditional banking is rapidly losing its monopoly on cross-border capital.
