Phyrex|Jan 15, 2026 21:06
Such a great write-up and an excellent piece of research, but the only pity is (as Joe mentioned) the star of this payment test wasn’t USDT, but the Vietnamese Dong.
Why do I say this? Because USDT is only involved at the front end, while the merchants are actually receiving Vietnamese Dong. Merchants themselves don’t feel anything about USDT. To put it another way, if this wasn’t happening in Vietnam but in Thailand, Africa, or Venezuela, the essence would still be the same—the final income for merchants would still be their local currency.
What does it resemble? It’s very similar to how we use credit cards. Whether it’s VISA, Mastercard, or UnionPay, they all provide similar functionalities. For example, with UnionPay, you deposit RMB, but when you spend overseas, the merchant ultimately receives the local currency instead of RMB. VISA and Mastercard work the same way—even if you deposit USD, when you use it in Vietnam or China, the final settlement is still in the local currency.
USDT, in this intermediary role, is just a medium—a medium that someone is willing to accept. But in reality, there are almost no countries or cities where you can fully consume using USDT alone. However, there are some countries or cities where USDT usage is very high, and it can be used directly without acting as a medium. These include Dubai, Lisbon, El Salvador, Venezuela, and Nigeria.
The road for cryptocurrencies to become the final settlement method for payments is still a long one.
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