Liu Qiangdong announces a push for stablecoins, and big companies have found a "new gold mine."

Author: Su Zihua

Editor: Jing Yu

Stablecoins are on fire.

They might be the hottest tech concept in June, aside from AI. The enthusiasm of major internet companies for stablecoins has brought them back into the mainstream spotlight.

On June 17, 2025, Liu Qiangdong, Chairman of the Board of JD Group, stated at a sharing session: "JD will apply for stablecoin licenses in major currency countries around the world, aiming to reduce cross-border payment costs by 90% and transfer times to within 10 seconds."

This may be the first time a founder or CEO of a Chinese internet giant has publicly stated their plans for cryptocurrency.

Stablecoins, in essence, are also a type of cryptocurrency.

Unlike cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, which experience severe price fluctuations, stablecoins maintain price stability by being pegged to fiat currencies (such as the US dollar, Hong Kong dollar, etc.) or assets.

Their main advantages are cost and efficiency. Research by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) shows that the efficiency of cross-border payments using stablecoins can be 100 times higher than traditional payments, with costs reduced by more than 90%.

This financial technology sector, which has long existed in the "gray area" and remained niche, is now exploding. According to public data, as of May 2025, the total market capitalization of global stablecoins has surpassed $24.63 billion, growing nearly 50 times since 2019.

Moreover, on June 5, the first stablecoin concept stock, Circle, was listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with its stock price soaring 168% on the first day, pushing its market capitalization over $18.3 billion, while it has fewer than 1,000 employees. Circle's listing has also greatly boosted confidence for other stablecoin companies. Recently, tech giants like Ant Group, Walmart, and Amazon have been actively promoting their own stablecoin projects.

In 2014, when JD went public in the U.S., Liu Qiangdong admitted that the biggest mistake was not entering the payment space earlier, falling far behind Alipay and WeChat Pay.

Now, amidst the wave of cross-border e-commerce and globalization, with major companies flocking in, stablecoins have clearly become a new opportunity in the payment sector that cannot be missed.

In the future, how will the vision of using stablecoins to purchase overseas goods and conduct cross-border transfers gradually become a reality? Will stablecoins become the next battleground for the giants?

01 What exactly is JD's stablecoin?

According to information disclosed by JD, its stablecoin, named JD-HKD, is a cryptocurrency pegged 1:1 to the Hong Kong dollar (HKD). This means that for every stablecoin issued, there is an equivalent high-liquidity asset (cash, government bonds, etc.) worth 1 HKD backing it, which is held in custody by a licensed bank and audited regularly.

JD's stablecoin is issued by JD Coin Chain Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, a subsidiary of JD.

This company was registered in March 2024 and holds licenses No. 1, 4, and 9 issued by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, covering securities trading, asset management, and blockchain technology development. JD Stablecoin Official Website | Image Source: Internet

Currently, JD's stablecoin has entered the second phase of testing in the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's "Stablecoin Issuer Sandbox." (The "sandbox" allows institutions intending to issue stablecoins in Hong Kong to test their operational plans, facilitating two-way communication to explore compliant regulatory frameworks.)

So, what is the purpose of JD's stablecoin?

Liu Peng, CEO of JD Coin Chain Technology, explained in a May interview with TECHHUB NEWS that the application scenarios being tested for JD's stablecoin mainly include cross-border payments, investment transactions, and retail payments.

Based on public information, the specifics are as follows:

• In terms of cross-border payments, currently, cross-border payments mainly rely on the SWIFT system, which requires 2-4 days for transfers and incurs fees of 1-3% of the transaction amount. Stablecoins can reduce the time to seconds and lower costs by 90%.

• For investment transactions, JD is collaborating with compliant cryptocurrency exchanges to support institutional and retail investors in digital asset trading, providing stable pricing and settlement tools.

• In retail payments, JD is integrating with e-commerce platforms like JD's Hong Kong and Macau sites to attempt to support consumers paying directly with JD-HKD.

It is evident that JD's ambitions in payments cover both B2B and B2C sectors.

As Liu Qiangdong mentioned in his June 17 sharing, "After completing B2B payments, we will penetrate into C2C payments, hoping that one day everyone can use JD stablecoins for payments while consuming around the world."

The impact of stablecoins on traditional payment systems presents opportunities for e-commerce giants, signifying lower transaction costs, faster capital turnover, and the chance to overtake in the cross-border trade market.

Additionally, stablecoins themselves are also a business with relatively high profit margins.

Taking Circle, whose stock recently surged, as an example, its net profit for 2023 was $268 million, with a projected net profit of $156 million for 2024.

Circle's main sources of revenue are twofold:

1. Reserve interest income: The fiat currency funds users use to purchase stablecoins can be invested in low-risk assets (such as U.S. Treasury bonds) to earn interest spreads. According to financial reports, this income accounted for 99% of total revenue in 2024, indicating a high dependence on interest rates in its business model. 2. Transaction fees: Service fees charged for cross-border payments, currency exchanges, and other scenarios.

Thus, JD's stablecoin's business model can be compared, and further details will not be elaborated here.

02 Major companies competing for stablecoins, clustering in Hong Kong

JD is not the only giant targeting stablecoins. Global internet and financial giants have already taken notice.

For instance, in June, Ant International and Ant Digital announced plans to apply for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong and Singapore. Ant Digital has established Hong Kong as its global headquarters and is testing stablecoin applications in a regulatory sandbox, focusing on global treasury management and cross-border payments.

Amazon and Walmart, as retail platforms, have similar logic in entering the stablecoin space as JD. Walmart, in particular, is trying to attract users underserved by traditional banks through the low fees of stablecoins and expand into emerging markets.

Xiaomi has chosen a lighter approach, with its Tianxing Bank collaborating with JD Coin Chain to develop cross-border payment solutions.

Additionally, traditional payment providers (such as Visa and PayPal) have also launched their own stablecoin initiatives, attempting to maintain market share through partnerships.

For these giants, Hong Kong is an excellent location for stablecoin deployment. Hong Kong's unique advantages include its status as an international financial center, a mature regulatory system, and connectivity with the mainland.

In May 2025, Hong Kong passed the "Stablecoin Ordinance," establishing the world's first regulatory framework for fiat-backed stablecoins, requiring issuers to hold a paid-up capital of HKD 25 million and maintain reserves of high-liquidity assets (such as cash and government bonds) at a 1:1 ratio to ensure stability and transparency.

This ordinance will take effect in August 2025.

Thus, a strong cohort of players has emerged, competing in Hong Kong's stablecoin ecosystem, categorized into three forces:

• Chinese tech giants: JD, Ant Group, Xiaomi, etc., leveraging e-commerce scenarios and user bases to capture cross-border payment opportunities;

• Traditional financial institutions: Standard Chartered Bank, Hong Kong Telecom, JPMorgan Chase, etc., focusing on stablecoin issuance, trading, and derivative businesses, targeting the global financial market;

• Web3 companies: Such as Round Coin Technology, which issues the HKD-pegged stablecoin HKDR;

The current popularity of stablecoins largely stems from the gradual improvement of regulations. As places like Hong Kong, the U.S., and the EU accelerate legislation, stablecoins are moving from the "gray area" to compliance, encouraging major companies and institutions to enter the market.

Standard Chartered Bank predicts that the global stablecoin market will reach $2 trillion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate of 58%.

Just as WeChat Pay reshaped the mobile payment ecosystem, stablecoins may become the "new SWIFT" in the digital age. With more heavyweight players entering the fray, the competition for dominance in the next-generation global payment network has already begun.

However, regulatory compliance and payment experience remain key variables, and their progress may profoundly impact our daily payment habits and even the future landscape of global payments.