Empire Western Union CEO: Western Union's Stablecoin Future
Apr 4, 2026
Devin McGranahan, CEO and President of Western Union, leads payments and remittance strategy and explains the firm's push into stablecoins and digital rails. He discusses why Western Union issued USDPT, how stablecoins free up capital while keeping customer experience intact, and plans to scale on Solana and other chains to enable institutional settlement and new payment rails.
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Stablecoins Turn Pre-Fund Float Into Interest Earning Capital
- Stablecoins let Western Union convert billions of pre-funded capital into interest-earning, real-time settlement to reduce negative float.
- Devin McGranahan says institutional stablecoins remove T+2/T+3 delays and free up capital tied to instant payouts worldwide.
Stablecoin Wallets And Cards Give Dollar Access In Fragile Economies
- Western Union will offer USD-denominated stablecoin wallets and physical stablecoin-backed cards as dollar proxies in countries with unstable local currencies.
- McGranahan highlights use in places like Bolivia where recipients can hold USDPT instead of volatile bolivars and spend via a stable card.
Local Treasury Access Beats Gray Market Crypto Liquidity
- Local market liquidity and regulated access to central banks are the real competitive edge in tough countries.
- McGranahan contrasts Western Union's central-bank-level access in places like Central Africa with crypto firms operating in costly gray markets.