How VCs Are Backing Stablecoin Projects in 2026: A Comprehensive Funding Report

Venture capital is flooding into stablecoin infrastructure with incredible speed.

In 2025, VC investment in stablecoin-related companies surpassed $1.5 billion (a 30x increase from 2019) and 2026 has kicked off with $1.4 billion committed across crypto venture rounds and IPOs in January alone.

The sector's breakout deal: Rain's $250M Series C at a $1.95 billion valuation, its third raise in under 12 months.

The thesis is converging across every tier of investor: stablecoins are becoming the default settlement layer for global commerce.

With the GENIUS Act now law, Y Combinator offering USDC payouts, and total stablecoin transaction volume hitting $33 trillion in 2025, the institutional floodgates are open.

This report breaks down the key deals, the most active VCs, and the trends shaping where capital flows next in the stablecoin ecosystem.

By the Numbers

How VCs Are Backing Stablecoin Projects in 2026

Major Stablecoin Funding Rounds (Late 2025 – Early 2026)

The concentration of capital into stablecoin infrastructure companies has been one of the defining features of the current funding cycle.

Here are the most significant rounds:

Deep Dives on Big Deals

Rain - The Stablecoin Infrastructure Unicorn

Rain's trajectory is the clearest signal of where VC conviction lies.

The company raised $24.5M (Series A), $58M (Series B), and $250M (Series C) in under 12 months, with its valuation jumping 17x from March 2025 to January 2026.

Led by ICONIQ, with Dragonfly, Bessemer, Lightspeed, and Galaxy Ventures also participating, Rain builds enterprise payment tools that let businesses issue stablecoin-backed cards and wallets that work anywhere Visa is accepted.

Active cards grew 30x and payment volume grew 38x over the past year.

ICONIQ partner Kamran Zaki called it a race to define the default enterprise platform for tokenized money.

BVNK - Enterprise Stablecoin Payments Goes Global

London-based BVNK raised $50M in Series B funding led by Haun Ventures, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Tiger Global, and DRW Venture Capital.

The company processes $10 billion in annualized stablecoin payment volumes for enterprise clients and is now expanding into the US market with offices in San Francisco and New York.

BVNK's positioning as the infrastructure layer that abstracts blockchain complexity for businesses aligns with the dominant VC thesis.

Coinflow - Taking on Stripe with Stablecoin PSP

Coinflow raised $25M in Series A from Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, and Jump Crypto.

The company functions as a stablecoin-native payment service provider (PSP), competing directly with Stripe and Worldpay by enabling merchants to process payments through blockchain rails without ever touching crypto themselves.

The company mints and burns stablecoins directly and settles payments instantly across Solana and Ethereum.

Y Combinator - USDC Funding for All Startups

In a landmark move announced February 3, 2026, Y Combinator began offering its standard $500,000 seed investment in USDC stablecoins across Ethereum, Base, and Solana.

This isn't limited to crypto startups, any YC company can opt in. YC cited the GENIUS Act as a regulatory inflection point and noted that stablecoin transfers cost less than one cent and settle in under one second.

YC partner Nemil Dalal explicitly called stablecoins one of the firm's key investment pillars and is actively seeking more stablecoin founders.

Most Active VCs in the Stablecoin Sector

The following firms have emerged as the most vocal and active investors in stablecoin infrastructure.

Their thesis statements reveal a remarkable degree of convergence: stablecoins represent a generational opportunity to replace legacy payment rails.

5 Key Themes Driving Stablecoin VC in 2026

1. Enterprise Payments Infrastructure Is the #1 Thesis

The clearest pattern across all major stablecoin deals is the focus on B2B payments and enterprise infrastructure.

Rain, BVNK, and Coinflow are all building the plumbing that allows businesses to move money via stablecoins without requiring end users to interact with crypto.

Galaxy Ventures' Will Nuelle estimates that non-crypto stablecoin use cases (trade finance, payment processing) already account for $200–250 billion annually, growing 100% year-over-year, and could hit $1 trillion annualized by the end of 2026.

2. The GENIUS Act Changed Everything

The passage of the GENIUS Act in 2025 created the first federal framework for stablecoins in the US, mirroring traditional banking safety and soundness standards.

This single regulatory milestone has unlocked a wave of institutional confidence. Y Combinator cited it directly when announcing USDC payouts.

VCs across the board point to it as the catalyst for mainstream enterprise adoption, and it has made the US the clear epicenter of stablecoin investment, accounting for nearly 48% of global crypto VC capital.

3. Stablecoins + Traditional Finance Convergence

The line between stablecoin companies and fintech is dissolving.

Stripe acquired Bridge for $1.1 billion.
Fiserv launched FIUSD.
PayPal is expanding PYUSD.

Mastercard enabled multiple stablecoins across its network. Cloudflare announced plans for its own stablecoin.

SoFi launched an enterprise stablecoin. Coinbase rolled out white-label stablecoin issuance for banks. VCs expect more acquisitions of crypto startups by banks and payment giants, creating exit opportunities for early investors.

4. Stablecoin Cards Are the Bridge to Mass Adoption

Stablecoin-linked payment cards have become the primary bridge between digital assets and everyday commerce.

Rain's Visa-linked cards are the flagship example, but the category is expanding rapidly. Dragonfly's Rob Hadick describes stablecoins as "eating finance" with the growth in B2B card-based transactions as a leading indicator.

The ability to spend stablecoins at any merchant that accepts Visa or Mastercard without the merchant knowing or caring about the underlying asset is the UX breakthrough the sector needed.

5. Early-Stage Remains Tough, But the Bar Is Higher

While headline deals are massive, early-stage stablecoin founders face one of the toughest funding environments in years.

Median seed valuations in crypto rose 70% to $34M, and median check sizes climbed 1.5x to $5M. VCs are prioritizing proven teams with clear product-market fit.

a16z's Arianna Simpson noted that crypto VC overlaps heavily with fintech now, bringing more traditional business model scrutiny (transaction fees, take rates, volume) rather than token economics.

What to Watch in Q1 2026

Bank-issued stablecoins: With FDIC rules for bank stablecoin issuance pending, expect the first wave of bank-issued stablecoins to launch. JPMorgan's Kinexys platform is already piloting tokenized deposit and stablecoin-based settlement tools.
Circle's post-IPO expansion: Circle has 100+ financial institutions in its payments network pipeline and launched Arc, a blockchain designed for enterprise stablecoin payments, FX, and capital markets.
World Liberty Financial's stablecoin bank: The Trump family-affiliated DeFi company has submitted an OCC application to establish a national trust bank purpose-built for stablecoin operations.
Wyoming's FRNT token: The state of Wyoming has officially launched the Frontier Stable Token ($FRNT), the first state-issued stablecoin — a category that didn't exist 12 months ago.
Fiserv + PayPal interoperability: FIUSD and PYUSD are going interoperable, opening stablecoins to thousands of financial institutions and PayPal's 430M+ consumers and 36M merchants.

The Bottom Line

VCs are placing massive, concentrated bets on the companies building enterprise-grade plumbing: payment processing, card issuance, settlement, compliance, and treasury management.

For founders: the bar has never been higher, but neither has the opportunity.

For investors: stablecoin infrastructure is the consensus trade of 2026, and the M&A exit environment has never been more favorable.