Stablecoins, Governance, and the Future of Money

We sat down with Gonçalo Sá from Creed, Joaquim M. Cavalheiro from SumCap, and Marc Tillement from Pyth Network to discuss what’s really happening with stablecoins.

The conversation explores current real-world use cases—from instant cross-border transfers to Argentinians using USDT to safeguard their savings. We examine why problematic on/off-ramps remain the greatest barrier to widespread adoption.

We delve into governance risks, including how token concentration can compromise entire protocols. Using examples like Maker DAO, we explore the challenges of building truly decentralized governance systems.

The discussion also covers the regulatory challenges facing companies like Tether and Circle, what compliance actually entails, and potential government responses as stablecoins become more common in everyday transactions.

On the technical side, we compare different stablecoin models—from fiat-backed to over-collateralized systems like Quill—and explain why understanding these mechanisms is crucial for risk management.

This roundtable offers a no-nonsense assessment of stablecoins’ strengths, limitations, and requirements for broader adoption.