Beyond Crypto Trading: The Real-World Impact Of Stablecoins

HONG KONG, CHINA - 2021/07/22: Cryptocurrency electronic cash Bitcoin banner advertisement seen in ... More Hong Kong. (Photo by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Stablecoins have evolved far beyond their origins as trading tools for crypto speculators. Today, they’re reshaping financial systems across emerging markets, with companies like Sling Money leading a revolution in cross-border payments. As stablecoin usage explodes to 30 million monthly active addresses (a 53% increase year-over-year according to Dune Analytics) their real-world utility is becoming impossible to ignore.
How Sling Money Experienced Unexpected Viral Growth in Kenya
When Mike Hudack and his team removed Sling Money’s waitlist in mid-September, they didn’t anticipate the surge that would follow. Within weeks, user signups in Kenya reached an unexpected seven per second.
During a recent interview, Hudack explained:
“We had kind of initially some number of dozens of users in Nairobi who fell in love with the app for one reason or another. A few of them actually made a video and tweeted it recommending Sling."
This organic recommendation sparked a chain reaction. The company sponsored a conference in Nairobi, where Hudack's co-founder gave a talk and hosted a small event. The results were "crazy" by Hudack's own description, leading to thousands of new users discovering the power of stablecoins for everyday transactions.