Meta Plans New Dollar-Backed Stablecoin for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp

Meta, with its flagship products Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is reportedly planning to launch a stablecoin for its online empire. One could learn from Ripple and PayPal or their stablecoins.

In 2019, there was considerable excitement when Facebook, along with partners like Uber, Mastercard, and Vodafone, announced a stablecoin called Libra. The G7 placed the project under observation, and finance ministers from Germany, France, and other countries announced their opposition to Facebook Libra.

In 2021, the Meta stablecoin was quietly scrapped before its launch. Now, however, a second attempt is reportedly underway, as the US tech website CoinDesk exclusively reported a few days ago. No denial has been issued – apparently, Meta does indeed intend to enter a sector where Ripple and PayPal have already gained experience.

PayPal PYUSD stablecoin after four years as a niche product

PayPal was one of the initiators of Facebook’s Libra project in 2019, but quickly withdrew and then launched its own stablecoin, PYUSD , in 2023. PayPal USD’s market capitalization only exceeded $1 billion in 2025 and currently stands at around $4.2 billion.

This leaves PayPal USD far behind market leaders Tether (USDT) with a market capitalization of $183 billion and Circle (USDC) with $76 billion. A meta-stablecoin for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp is also unlikely to be a guaranteed success.

Ripple RLUSD – Meta will rethink stablecoins

Ripple, with its stablecoin RLUSD, is also experiencing the frustration of falling short of high expectations. Since its launch in December 2024, Ripple USD’s market capitalization has grown only very slowly, amassing just under $1.6 billion.

For the crypto industry, PayPal and Ripple stablecoins thus represent niche products, playing no real role in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. However, Meta boasts over 3 billion users for its services, who are expected to form the basis for a successful stablecoin.

Facebook’s currency might be outsourced to Stripe

As far as is known, Meta will not be managing its stablecoin project itself this time, but will instead commission an external financial service provider such as Stripe. The concept of Facebook’s Libra will also not be repeated, where the US dollar, along with other global currencies like the euro and British pound, was intended to form an underlying currency basket.

“Meta USD” will be pegged solely to the US dollar; in the US, the Genius Bill has created a legal framework for stablecoins. US business magazines like Forbes are already considering whether a Facebook stablecoin can succeed in the changed market environment.

Meta aims to enhance Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp with digital currency

The argument Meta is likely using internally to promote its stablecoin is a double-edged sword. Currently, Facebook only allows payments for goods and services via Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal. This means Meta misses out on fee revenue, and the payment processes are more complicated than desired.

An NFT, an exciting video, or friends are examples – transferring small amounts within the Meta ecosystem isn’t straightforward. Anyone who has to enter three or four passwords just to spend a few euros is likely to abandon the idea altogether. Meta will need to work with a financial services provider to improve the user-friendliness of a Facebook stablecoin to avoid a false start.

Conclusion: Facebook stablecoin – debut as early as this summer?

The prospect of a stablecoin with billion-dollar potential no longer excites central banks and politicians as much as it did six or seven years ago, something Meta can be pleased about. Executives at Amazon and AI companies are also considering whether to deeply integrate blockchain-compatible currencies into their systems, favoring their own solutions.

The Facebook stablecoin is slated for launch in the second half of the year, and the search for a name promises to be exciting. Ripple (RLUSD) and PayPal (PYUSD) have found only limited acceptance in the crypto industry – Meta will set its own goals.

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(Featured image by Dima Solomin via Unsplash)

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