The news: DoorDash is turning to Tempo, a blockchain backed by Stripe and Paradigm, to power stablecoin payouts to gig workers, per a blog post.

Why this matters: We’re finally seeing real-world use cases for stablecoin technology and infrastructure after steep investments by big payment players.

Stripe paid $1.1 billion for stablecoin platform Bridge in October 2024 and later bought crypto wallet Privy for an undisclosed amount.

Looking forward: Stablecoin solutions appear to have sticking power beyond the hype, with PayPal and Visa also making advances for stablecoin payouts for content creators. 

Keeping Tempo competitive against the likes of Circle’s Arc and Google’s Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL) will depend on its utility to platforms. Features like batch payments and Tempo Zones for private payments and could offer an edge over other blockchains.

Implications for stablecoin providers: Stablecoin payouts need to be flawless on execution; otherwise, platforms will see crypto as a liability instead of an asset. Gig workers and creators are good test cases for early crypto rollouts given these workers’ desire for faster payouts in industries with uneven earnings.