According to CoinDesk, digital assets and stablecoins represent a return to a longer-term historical trend of money being far more international than it is today. They serve as a means of unshackling money from inherently national payment systems and placing it on the open internet. In the past, the world was divided into much larger currency blocs, such as the Spanish doubloon, Indian rupee, and Ottoman lira dominating various regions. However, colonialism, independence movements, and the collapse of empires led to the creation of over 150 currencies by 2000.
The arrival of digital assets and stablecoins, which allow money to be placed on the open internet, means that the borders separating currency areas are breaking down. Stablecoins, unlike fiat currency or many central bank digital currencies, are borderless by design. They can be sent as easily and cheaply as sending a text message or an email and can be held by a recipient in a digital wallet. Currently issued by private companies, a limited group of nations may have an opportunity to support the international or regional adoption of their currencies by making them available as stablecoins. This could lead to a return of the historical norm of the world existing in much larger currency blocs, making cross-border commerce much cheaper and easier.