Solana Pay sets out to simplify stablecoin payments for merchants

Solana has today unveiled a set of decentralised payment standards and protocols via its new product – Solana Pay – in a bid to simplify the acceptance and settlement of dollar-pegged stable coins such as USDC for merchants.

The product will aim to “usher in new commerce capabilities” for merchants and give them the ability to “accept and move any volume of digital dollar currencies” that are compatible with Solana’s lower fees, faster speeds and on a more decentralised basis.

Solana Pay’s initial development – which adopts a decentralised, open peer-to-peer nature – came via the support of partners such as Solana Labs, Circle and Checkout.com alongside digital wallet integrations from Phantom, FTX and Slope.

Via the use of Solana Pay, companies such as Circle have since begun development on payment solutions that enable merchants to directly accept and manage payments in USD Coin (USDC) in their Circle Account along with the option to hold balances in USDC, convert to fiat and send funds on-chain.

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX also integrated with Solana Pay to provide its wallet users with faster transaction capabilities and enable merchants to instantly receive Solana-based USDC tokens from FTX Pay users checking out using this payment rail.

Leveraging Solana’s Software Development Kit (SDK), the product is able to power peer-to-peer connections between merchants of all sizes and consumers with crypto wallets – effectively bringing dollar-based stable coin payments in assets such as USDC and other Solana-based assets to far broader audiences.

In addition, Solana noted that the “direct connection” between a merchant and a consumer’s wallet address could unlock a “bi-directional communication channel”  that allows them to send offers and promotions, grant NFTs and create rewards and loyalty programs.

“Solana Pay gives merchants a new, simplified framework to transact with their customers, enabling them to accept and settle funds directly with no intermediaries, zero fraud liability, and processing fees measured in fractions of a cent,” said Sheraz Shere, Head of Payments at Solana Labs.

“Solana Pay transforms outdated one-way transaction models into powerful, two-way merchant-to-consumer relationships, giving brands and retailers a direct channel to surprise and delight their customers in new ways.”