Stablecoins are accelerating crypto adoption across iGaming by cutting settlement times and smoothing player journeys, according to Payhound executives speaking at SBC Summit Lisbon 2025.
Elton Dimech said gaming brands have long chased innovation to attract and retain players, with crypto emerging as “a natural option” that offers faster payouts and a differentiated experience. He noted the shift from traditional rails to digital assets for cross-border settlement.
“With stable coin payments, you can get money in a few seconds,” he said, adding that providers like Payhound can “off-ramp that crypto into fiat and then settle it into your bank accounts.”
Dimech also pointed to Malta’s role in Payhound’s growth. Choosing the jurisdiction “around six years ago,” he said the country’s crypto framework “has been quite robust… so much so that the European Union decided to replicate in big parts of it” with the MiCA regime, meaning the firm “did not have to change much” when the new rules arrived.
From the operator side, appetite has flipped from caution to urgency, said Payhound’s Baris Saribaz. “Operators used to be… trying to escape from the crypto in the past but nowadays… they come to us [to ask] how quick they can get the solution live and… finish the onboarding.”
He added that stablecoins are now the default ask because they reduce volatility and speed up flows for both players and casinos. “Players will prefer always stable coins… it makes it easy for them… to not have any volatility.”
Saribaz said operators typically start with stablecoins and “then… switch on the other coins if there is a demand,” reflecting a pragmatic, player-led rollout.
To hear more from Dimech and Saribaz and explore Payhound’s plans for the future, watch the full interview in the video above.
