Key Takeaways:
Hyundai Card moved $20,000 between US and Mexican subsidiaries in seven minutes using Tether's USDT on Avalanche, bypassing a banking system that takes days.
Hyundai Motor Group completed a $20,000 cross-border stablecoin settlement between its US and Mexico subsidiaries on the Avalanche blockchain, cutting transaction time from days to seven minutes. The proof of concept, announced July 9, involved Hyundai Card, Tether, Ava Labs, and blockchain infrastructure firm Axiym.
"This proof of concept demonstrates how stablecoins can serve as a settlement layer for multinational corporations, reducing reliance on correspondent banking networks," a Hyundai Card spokesperson said.
Funds were converted from USD to Tether's USDT at Hyundai Motor America, transferred across the Avalanche network, and redeemed back to USD at Hyundai Motor Mexico. The entire settlement cycle averaged seven minutes. Traditional interbank wire transfers between the same entities typically take three to four hours and can stretch to multiple days when intermediary banks are involved.
Hyundai Card plans a follow-up trial by the end of July targeting Hyundai Motor's European offices. That phase will incorporate Circle's USDC stablecoin and Visa as partners, and will test multi-currency settlements across European subsidiaries where foreign exchange conversion costs become a factor. The company said the European expansion will also address regulatory, accounting, tax, and internal control considerations.
Why a card company leads this effort
Hyundai Card is the first card issuer to lead a stablecoin remittance initiative for a large corporation's overseas subsidiaries, according to the company. It operates within Hyundai Motor Group, a conglomerate with a market presence spanning dozens of countries and extensive global supply chains.
The pilot brings together four distinct capabilities: Tether supplies the stablecoin, Avalanche provides the blockchain rails, Axiym handles the payment infrastructure connecting traditional rails to blockchain settlement, and Hyundai Card coordinates the corporate treasury use case. Ava Labs, the development team behind Avalanche, structured the partnership.
What the European test will measure
The European phase will specifically evaluate whether stablecoin-based transfers deliver meaningful savings on foreign exchange costs compared to traditional banking channels. Moving USDT between two dollar-denominated subsidiaries is straightforward. Moving value across European offices means dealing with euros, pounds, and other local currencies, introducing conversion costs that the pilot aims to quantify.
If successful, the framework could be extended to other Hyundai Motor Group entities globally, creating a template for corporate treasury management that bypasses correspondent banking networks. The outcome of these trials could influence broader adoption of stablecoins for cross-border payments within the automotive and financial sectors.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
