Stablecoins are revolutionizing the global payments infrastructure, focusing on settlement rails and B2B payouts rather than consumer checkouts, according to BridgerPay co-founder Ran Cohen. In a recent interview, Cohen highlighted that the surge in stablecoin usage is primarily in institutional and cross-border transactions, with stablecoin transaction volume surpassing $33 trillion in 2025. This shift addresses cross-border settlement challenges, offering near-instant settlements and reduced fees, particularly beneficial in emerging markets. Cohen emphasized that while consumer checkout adoption of stablecoins exists, it is mainly within crypto-native businesses. Mainstream merchants continue to prefer credit cards due to established consumer protections. The trend is further supported by major acquisitions, such as Mastercard's purchase of BVNK for up to $1.8 billion and Stripe's acquisition of Bridge for $1.1 billion, underscoring the focus on infrastructure over consumer interfaces. Cohen also noted the potential of AI-agent payments, which align well with stablecoin settlement due to their high-frequency, low-value nature.