Stablecoin Payment Startup Rain Raises $250 Million at Nearly $2 Billion Valuation; Dragonfly Partner Haseeb Qureshi Optimistic About Stablecoin Payment Cards’ Global Adoption (Previous context: Visa announces support for four stablecoins, enabling cross-chain conversion to fiat currencies in 25 countries) (Background: Dragonfly Partner: AI Agents are just chatbots with meme coins attached, will ultimately die)

Table of Contents

• Rain raises $250 million, valuation approaches $2 billion
• Skepticism persists in developed markets
• Stablecoin regulation continues to advance

Crypto industry leaders point out that stablecoin-driven payment cards are becoming one of the most important crypto themes of 2026. These payment cards aim to retain the advantages of blockchain while maintaining a familiar payment experience for consumers.

Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at crypto venture firm Dragonfly, posted on X Friday:

This is one of the major themes of 2026: crypto is integrating more deeply into the payment flows of the global economy.

Rain raises $250 million, valuation approaches $2 billion

Qureshi stated that “stablecoin cards are growing like crazy globally,” a comment made after stablecoin startup Rain completed a $250 million funding round that pushed Rain’s valuation to nearly $2 billion.

The backdrop for this substantial funding is Rain’s 30x growth in active cards during 2025, with annualized payment transaction volume increasing nearly 40x, making it one of the fastest-growing fintech companies globally. The platform supports major stablecoins including Tether (USDT) and USDC, spanning multiple blockchain networks including Ethereum, Solana, Tron, and Stellar.

Qureshi points out that Rain is one of a new wave of stablecoin startups integrating blockchain into payment systems, offering faster settlement, lower costs, and broader global reach while providing seamless consumer experience:

They don’t even know the underlying technology is crypto. They just know that suddenly they can pay anyone in dollars anytime, anywhere, buy anything, and it all “just works.”

Meanwhile, Bloomberg Intelligence predicted Thursday that stablecoin payment flows will grow at a 81% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), reaching $56.6 trillion by 2030.

Skepticism persists in developed markets

However, not everyone believes stablecoin payments can challenge traditional credit cards in developed countries. Sheel Mohnot, general partner at Better Tomorrow Ventures, states that stablecoin merchant adoption lacks a fixed audience, exclusivity, and killer incentives that drive real change.

Pantera Capital investor Mason Nystrom countered Mohnot’s view, emphasizing that stablecoin payments offer merchants instant payouts, real-time settlement, and chargeback protection:

The stablecoin rails are disrupting the entire fintech stack. Some existing players will choose to adopt, others will be completely replaced. Stablecoin checkout will be massive.

Stablecoin regulation continues to advance

The passage of the U.S. GENIUS Act appears to have injected momentum into year-end regulatory efforts, with Canada and the U.K. also accelerating efforts to implement stablecoin frameworks in 2026 or the near future.

Institutional adoption is also accelerating. Remittance platform Western Union expects to launch a stablecoin settlement system on the Solana blockchain in the first half of 2026, along with stablecoin cards that allow consumers to spend in emerging markets.