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Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

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Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#831

Post by kasey_junk »

cogogo wrote: post #810
pc wrote: post #46

There are lots of crypto skeptics on HN (and we ourselves were disappointed with crypto's payments utility for much of the past decade), so it might be interesting to share what changed our mind over the past couple of years: we started to notice a lot of real-world businesses finding utility in stablecoins. For example, Bridge (a stablecoin orchestration platform that Stripe acquired) is used by SpaceX for managing…

> For example, Bridge (a stablecoin orchestration platform that Stripe acquired) is used by SpaceX for managing money in long-tail markets. I genuinely do not understand this example. What is spacex actually doing? And why do they even have money in “long tail markets” at all?

I don’t know anything about this specific case but it is common for manufacturers to have currency needs in long tail markets to facilitate payments to subsidiaries, vendors and employees in all the places they do business.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#832

Post by _zoltan_ »

rebolek wrote: post #379
_zoltan_ wrote: post #316

Earlier quoted context omitted.

screw regulation when a bank transfer isn't instant and the bank can do all kinds of checks and hold your money hostage for days or weeks.

In EU, regulations are heavy and the result is I can send money instantly for free. That’s actually what the regulations are for. To protect free trade from bad actors.

yeah, I checked a couple countries and I don't see this instant transfer for free. certainly not for every EU country.

and then let's not even talk about the instantly part, that is just simply not true.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#833

Post by isodev »

dperfect wrote: post #348
pc wrote: post #46

There are lots of crypto skeptics on HN (and we ourselves were disappointed with crypto's payments utility for much of the past decade), so it might be interesting to share what changed our mind over the past couple of years: we started to notice a lot of real-world businesses finding utility in stablecoins. For example, Bridge (a stablecoin orchestration platform that Stripe acquired) is used by SpaceX for managing…

It sounds great, but every time I see this argument, I end up going down the rabbit hole of actually studying how stablecoins operate. And every time, I come to the same conclusion: they always rely on trust in an off-chain oracle or custodian. At that point, a shared ledger implemented with traditional databases / protocols would be faster, easier, and more transparent. Bitcoin (and possibly a few others) is one of…

> But I imagine most banks would point to regulation as a reason for the delays

There is also good regulation e.g. the EU made it so banks process transactions within "10 seconds", including and especially cross-border transfers for SEPA countries (Single Euro Payments Area). https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20240202IP...

So banks willingly being slow with transfers is perhaps a question for your local policymaker to remind them they can do better.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#834

Post by koolba »

apinstein wrote: post #151

Here's the play. It's very simple, and it's quite good. Stripe processes a LOT of money. The customers that get that money need to move it around. Often to banks. Stripe makes no money on that. Over the last few years, stablecoins have become a preferred means to hold and move money (for convenience, etc). Stablecoin providers make money on their float -- selling stablecoins means you get free deposits, and risk-free…

> Stablecoin providers make money on their float -- selling stablecoins means you get free deposits, and risk-free rates are presently around 4%. For every $1M in stablecoins your customers hold, you can make $40k/year. Stablecoin providers like Circle pay about half of that back out to partners that sell the tokens.

These numbers only work while short term rates are high (relative to recent history) and the share percentage is low. The lower the rates and the tighter the margins, and it drops like a rock.

Nobody with a sizable balance is going to accept the risk of a system like this without being paid a premium over traditional bank deposits. If my bank gives me 4% I’m not going to give stripe half of that in exchange for losing FDIC protections.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#835

Post by snthpy »

dperfect wrote: post #348
pc wrote: post #46

There are lots of crypto skeptics on HN (and we ourselves were disappointed with crypto's payments utility for much of the past decade), so it might be interesting to share what changed our mind over the past couple of years: we started to notice a lot of real-world businesses finding utility in stablecoins. For example, Bridge (a stablecoin orchestration platform that Stripe acquired) is used by SpaceX for managing…

It sounds great, but every time I see this argument, I end up going down the rabbit hole of actually studying how stablecoins operate. And every time, I come to the same conclusion: they always rely on trust in an off-chain oracle or custodian. At that point, a shared ledger implemented with traditional databases / protocols would be faster, easier, and more transparent. Bitcoin (and possibly a few others) is one of…

Have you looked into Ethena USDe?

It is completely decentralized and doesn't use a flawed algorithmic stablecoin mechanism like Terra-Luna but rather creates synthetic cash exposure by shorting perpetuals against collateral the same way a TradFi investment manager would manage their asset allocation exposure. The perps are traded on DEXs and I believe the BTC and ETH is held in on-chain vaults.

This is a solid model and I believe the leading decentralized stablecoin.

Things like USDT and USDC are essentially tokenized real-world dollars. Nothing inherently wrong with that, for example the Eurodollar market has existed for decades, but it does require oversight that collateral reserves are what they are and also means they are not truly decentralized as you point out.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#836

Post by alkonaut »

So if one ignores the liability/regulation part of this stunt, and just look at the technical merit. Could you then say that this blockchain really provides nothing that a traditional centralized system wouldn't? But at much higher complexity and cost?

Wouldn't that just mean that the whole schtick is to avoid regulation? If I as a regulator saw this, I'd just schedule it for my next meeting, since you want to avoid having companies doing regulatory exploits "until regulation catches up". It's Uber all over otherwise.

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#837

Post by davidlee1435 »

XorNot wrote: post #609
davidlee1435 wrote: post #526

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right now, the stability of your currency is mostly dictated by where you were born My point is stablecoins give you choice to opt out of that. The only way to opt out before was very expensive

This is as wrong as everytime someone says "the benefit of Bitcoin is you can just walk all your assets across the border!" It fundamentally misunderstands how foreign exchange works, or how government backed currency works. You cannot "opt out" of the local currency: period. It is the only currency which can extinguish tax obligations. And even if it wasn't government backed, you can't trade in a currency no one wan…

Just because badly managed local currency is required for taxes doesn't mean that most people in that country _must want_ to hold it. Plenty of trivially obvious evidence to the contrary

I assume you've never experienced hyper-inflation? If you have, do you think it's fair that you were forced into a hyper-inflationary currency? And, if given the means to, do you think it's fair that people _should_ have the ability to choose?

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#838

Post by Scarblac »

dperfect wrote: post #348
pc wrote: post #46

There are lots of crypto skeptics on HN (and we ourselves were disappointed with crypto's payments utility for much of the past decade), so it might be interesting to share what changed our mind over the past couple of years: we started to notice a lot of real-world businesses finding utility in stablecoins. For example, Bridge (a stablecoin orchestration platform that Stripe acquired) is used by SpaceX for managing…

It sounds great, but every time I see this argument, I end up going down the rabbit hole of actually studying how stablecoins operate. And every time, I come to the same conclusion: they always rely on trust in an off-chain oracle or custodian. At that point, a shared ledger implemented with traditional databases / protocols would be faster, easier, and more transparent. Bitcoin (and possibly a few others) is one of…

Do bank transfers really still take days in the US?

Re: Stripe Launches L1 Blockchain: Tempo

#840

Post by justin66 »

kccqzy wrote: post #458
raincole wrote: post #403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> a shared ledger implemented with traditional databases / protocols would be faster, easier, and more transparent. Stablecoin is not a technology. It's an excuse. An excuse to do what banks do while not being regulated like a bank or using the infrastructure banks use. Similar to how Airbnb is not a technology but an excuse to do what hotels do without hotel's license. So it makes no sense to compare it to database,…

Large banks like JPMorgan Chase are also looking into launching their own stablecoins, just because it has less regulation than normal banking. In fact Jamie Dimon himself says so. The idea is really simple: creating stablecoin deposit accounts for customers allows banks to skip existing customer protections that are normally afforded to traditional deposit accounts.

> Large banks like JPMorgan Chase are also looking into launching their own stablecoins, just because it has less regulation than normal banking.

That always works out great.

Can't wait for the next explosion, followed by government bailout, followed by some portion of all our wealth vaporizing, all to the benefit of a small number of people.

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