Meta is preparing to return to the stablecoin market. However, this time, instead of issuing its own token, the company aims to establish a dollar-backed digital payment system in collaboration with a third-party provider. The plan is expected to be implemented in the second half of 2026.
According to Bloomberg, Meta has submitted Request for Proposal (RFP) documents to various companies for stablecoin and digital wallet integration. The company is reportedly particularly keen on working with Stripe on the payment infrastructure side. Stripe's acquisition of stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge last year and CEO Patrick Collison's joining Meta's board of directors in April 2025 have strengthened the strategic rapprochement between the two companies.
This move puts Meta in the same league as other tech giants developing digital payment systems through social platforms. Telegram already has an integrated digital payment model, while X (formerly Twitter) has moved from internal testing to its first external beta phase. Strengthening the payment infrastructure of social media platforms creates an alternative to the traditional banking system, especially for cross-border money transfers and payments to content creators. From Meta's perspective, scale is the biggest advantage. The company has over 3.2 billion users worldwide. A stablecoin-backed wallet integrated into such a user base could provide instant access on a global scale. Furthermore, Meta could create a new revenue stream through transaction fees or platform commissions. The company recently announced revenue of $59.89 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025; this represents a 24% year-on-year increase.
A more cautious turn after Libra
Meta's stablecoin history, however, has been quite turbulent. In 2019, the company launched a fiat-backed stablecoin project called Libra. The project aimed to establish a global payment system via social media. However, intense pressure from regulators in the US and Europe, along with concerns about data privacy and financial stability, led to significant resistance. In 2020, Libra was renamed Diem; however, regulatory hurdles were not overcome. As a result, Meta completely terminated the Diem project in 2022 and sold the intellectual property rights to Silvergate Bank for $182 million. That same year, the company also shut down Novi, its digital wallet which had failed to deliver the expected performance due to its connection to Diem. This experience clearly demonstrated that the company needed to manage regulatory risks more carefully.
Meta's decision to use third-party infrastructure instead of issuing its own stablecoin in this new venture is seen as a strategic step to avoid direct regulatory pressure. One source indicates that the company wants to run this project "at arm's length." This approach aims to prevent a repetition of the political and legal tensions experienced during the Libra era.
The timing is also noteworthy. A clearer framework for stablecoin regulations is being established in the US; the GENIUS Act, introduced during President Donald Trump's administration, signals a more lenient approach to the sector compared to previous years. In 2019, when Libra was launched, the stablecoin market was approximately $1 billion. Today, that figure has risen to over $300 billion. The fact that major financial and technology companies like PayPal, Visa, and Stripe are expanding their stablecoin operations throughout 2025 makes Meta's move even more legitimate.
