Bank of International Settlement (BIS) says stablecoins are not money

BIS dismisses stablecoins - $260 billion of digital dollars power liquidity

I will fact-check that.

“Central bank of central banks” just published 42-page takedown of stablecoins.

Their conclusion?

USDT, USDC, and other stablecoins FAIL 3 key tests:

- Singleness
- Elasticity
- Integrity

I'll debunk each one.

1. Singleness?

BIS says dollar is a dollar in TradFi - no matter which bank issues it.

But that’s fiction.

Every TradFi dollar carries counterparty risk.
Your money is someone else’s liability.
There is no self-custody in TradFi.
And no atomic settlement.
USDT and USDC?

They settle in seconds, on-chain, with full finality.

2. Elasticity?

They call stablecoins “cash-in-advance.”

Because new supply requires full reserves.

But that’s the point.

USDT and USDC are backed 1:1 by cash and short-term Treasuries.

Traditional dollars?

Issued out of thin air by banks via credit & debt creation.

No backing.
Only debt.

BIS praises a system where liquidity is elastic - because it’s made up.

3. Integrity?

They claim stablecoins enable crime.

Yet 90%+ of stablecoin volume is professional trading:

- Market makers
- Hedge funds
- Prop shops

Moving liquidity between exchanges.

Monthly turnover: over $1T

Criminal activity?

Less than 0.2%, according to Chainalysis.

Traditional banks have paid $380B in fines since 2000.

Let’s talk integrity.

Bottom line:

BIS is scared.

Because dollar-backed tokens are winning – globally.
Because $260B in stablecoins bypass their gatekeeping.
Because USDT and USDC are programmable, fast, transparent.

Their report doesn’t expose stablecoins.
It exposes legacy finance.

While BIS is talking theory - adoption goes.

- GENIUS Act passed U.S. Senate with bipartisan support for stablecoin regulation
- UAE approved AE Coin, fully backed by dirhams, now live for flight bookings
- Ripple’s RLUSD greenlit for use in Dubai International Financial Centre
- Amazon, Walmart, JPMorgan all exploring deposit token infrastructure
- Circle IPOed at $32, surged to $299, now trades around $222
- FAB, IHC, ADQ developing their own AED stablecoin

Stablecoins aren’t experiment.

They’re the future of regulated, real-time money, and it’s already happening in U.S. and UAE.

And BIS?

Still publishing PDFs.

Don’t fall for academic theater. Follow the adoption curve.

And keep building.