An alliance of major blockchain companies and infrastructure firms has announced the launch of the Blockchain Payments Consortium (BPC). The group, which includes Solana Foundation, Polygon Labs, Stellar Development Foundation, TON Foundation, Mysten Labs, and Fireblocks, aims to create unified technical and regulatory frameworks that span cross-chain stablecoin payments and interoperability. In terms of value settled on-chain, the BPC is claimed to outperform conventional card schemes like Visa and Mastercard, which together handle over $10 trillion (approximately Rs. 8,86,90,000 crore) in stablecoin volume annually.
New Blockchain Alliance Aims to Tackle Fragmentation in Global Crypto Payments
The decision comes amidst growing demand for payment rails that operate across different blockchain ecosystems, potentially bridging the gap between decentralised systems and conventional financial infrastructure. The initiative aims to address fragmentation, a key obstacle to blockchain-based payments. Each network currently uses its own settlement, protocol, and compliance mechanisms, which limit the scalability and reliability of cross-chain transactions.
In order for blockchain payments to progress from specialised use cases to finance-grade procedures, the BPC has stated that it intends to create common standards for technical interoperability, regulatory compliance, settlement systems, and institutional integration.
Members of this consortium highlighted the need for urgency. According to the Stellar Development Foundation, stablecoins now move more value globally than traditional card networks, with on-chain payment volumes reportedly surpassing $15 trillion (roughly Rs. 13,30,35,000 crore) in 2024. As per the manifesto, the industry often discusses interoperability but rarely delivers real progress when it comes to bridging rival ecosystems, describing the new consortium as a “significant turning point” for blockchain payments.
Despite optimism, the initiative faces major challenges. Standardisation efforts will require cooperation between competing blockchain networks, regulators and traditional financial institutions. It will take time and coordination to transform frameworks into functional, compliant systems that can handle large-scale institutional payments. The consortium’s ambitions may struggle to move beyond pilot testing.
Nevertheless, the establishment of the Blockchain Payments Consortium is regarded as a significant step in the development of the blockchain payments environment. It reflects growing recognition within the crypto sector that achieving scale and trustworthiness will depend on collaboration and unified standards, rather than isolated development across separate ecosystems.
Cryptocurrency is an unregulated digital currency, not a legal tender and subject to market risks. The information provided in the article is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice, trading advice or any other advice or recommendation of any sort offered or endorsed by NDTV. NDTV shall not be responsible for any loss arising from any investment based on any perceived recommendation, forecast or any other information contained in the article.
