Study Finds Stablecoins Now Supporting Key Parts of Australia’s Financial System

Digital asset custody firm Zodia Custody released a new report on Thursday, calling stablecoins the “quiet plumbing” behind key financial operations in Australia, with their adoption driven by practical utility rather than speculation.

The study titled “Pegged for Growth”, authored by Zodia Custody managing director Ryan Hodges and Crystal aOS CEO Joni Pirovich, reviewed stablecoin usage across Australia and New Zealand. It identified payments, treasury operations, trading infrastructure, and early tokenization pilots as the five practical use cases that are already delivering critical value to the economic landscape of both nations.

Zodia Custody’s New Report Asserts Stablecoins’ Influence on the Australian Economy

Hodges argued that stablecoins are no longer a niche financial technology, but are rapidly becoming “essential infrastructure” that are solving practical problems for businesses in Australia. He called the fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies the “connective tissue of a modern financial system,” adding that the emerging system is faster, more open, and able to meet the country’s next decade of “digital innovation.”

Meanwhile, Pirovich characterized the digital asset class as a “lightbulb and a Kodak moment” for banks and asset managers. She highlighted the rapidly improving crypto regulatory environments both in Australia and internationally as the platform for large-scale adoption by 2030.

“We’re fast-moving out of the regulatory purgatory we’ve experienced over the last decade, and after years of pilots and testing, the market is poised to launch, and is launching, blockchain-based innovations,” the Crystal aOS CEO said.

The Zodia Custody study identified five real-world use cases where stablecoins are functioning as a “quiet plumbing” of the Australian economy: payments, treasury and liquidity operations, cross-border transactions, settlements, and tokenized yield management.

Stablecoins are Bridging the Liquidity Gap Created by Traditional Banking Rails Through 24/7 Settlements

Entities such as crypto exchanges, brokers, OTC providers, and Web3 firms across the Asia-Pacific region utilize stablecoins for operational float, intraday liquidity, and instant settlement balances across multiple trading venues. The report emphasized that Australia’s role as a liquidity bridge between the U.S. and Asian markets creates practical treasury demands, which cannot be met by traditional banking rails, as they do not offer 24/7 settlement. In contrast, stablecoins bridge this gap by allowing Australian companies to manage risk and participate in global liquidity pools while the banks are closed.

They have emerged as a vital alternative for settling high-value transactions, enabling companies to pay offshore teams, regional suppliers, and international contractors, and to move funds between cross-border entities. The report also highlights stablecoins’ 24/7/365 settlement infrastructure, making them an ideal base settlement layer for atomic delivery-versus-payment (DvP) systems for digital and other financial assets.

Currently, 75% of trades of Australian crypto exchanges involve a stablecoin on one or both sides.

Australian Retirement Funds, Among the World’s Largest, Can Access Regulated Digital Asset Investments via Stablecoins

At the same time, Australian family offices and high-net-worth individuals are using stablecoins to access products like tokenized U.S. Treasuries, institutional crypto liquidity pools, and blockchain reward mechanisms, offering them a vital alternative to idle cash balances. The study notes that this use case is relevant given that the country is home to the world’s fourth-largest pool of retirement savings.

Australian retirement funds, commonly known as “superannuation”, are a mandatory workplace savings system designed to support retirement income. Employers are required to contribute 12% of an employee’s earnings into a superannuation fund, which is categorized into industry funds, retail funds, and self-managed super funds (SMSFs). As of June 2025, the country’s retirement assets total AU$4.33 trillion ($2.88 trillion), making it the fourth-largest holder of pension funds globally.

The Zodia Custody report also asserts that tokenized fixed income through stablecoins offers Australian investors a compelling blend of USD exposure, daily liquidity, and fractionalization that perfectly aligns with the focus of SMSFs on stable and regulated yield.

Commenting on the development, Zodia’s product marketing head, Laura Dinneen, said that the country’s adoption of stablecoin is no longer driven by ideology or speculation, but by practical economic utility. The asset class serves as a connective tissue across treasury operations, commerce trading, and tokenized capital markets.

“Australia’s digital asset landscape is moving from possibility to implementation, and stablecoins are proving to be one of the foundational tools enabling that shift,” she added.

Australian Dollar-backed Stablecoins AUDD and AUDF are Seeing Strong User Adoption

Several AUD-backed stablecoin issuers also contributed to the study, including digital banking and banking platform Novatti Group’s AUDD and Forte Securities’ Forte AUD (AUDF) tokens, with both firms confirming strong user adoption for the products.

According to reports, AUDD has already processed nearly $1 billion in transaction volume. Earlier this year, the stablecoin issued by Australian fintech firm AUDC was listed on the Coinbase exchange, marking a significant milestone for the project. AUDD is also involved in several government-backed crypto pilot projects, including the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre’s CBDC program, ‘Project Acacia’. AUDC CEO Effie Dimitropoulos said the stablecoin has already processed nearly $1 billion worth of transaction volume.

Paula Gregory, CEO of Forte AUD, lauded the advancements made in the country surrounding stablecoin regulation, stating that it has given companies more confidence to move from a position of discussion and planning to “genuine” production and innovation. He added that businesses seeking to use stablecoins for payments can now progress with much more clarity and certainty. The AUDF token has a market capitalization of $2.59 million and operates on multiple blockchains, including Ethereum, Avalanche, and Polygon.

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