Stripe and crypto investor Paradigm unveiled Tempo, a new blockchain project designed for stablecoin payments, on Thursday. The effort originated within Stripe and aims to support the high volume of real payment flows the company processes.
Tempo is meant to move money fast, as it promises tens of thousands of transactions per second and final confirmation in less than a second. The partners say the chain will let fees be paid in stablecoins and include tools to keep different issuers neutral.
Big partners sign on
A wide group of firms is helping shape Tempo, and the list includes Anthropic, Deutsche Bank, DoorDash, Nubank, OpenAI, Revolut, Shopify, Standard Chartered and Visa.
Stripe said these partners will give feedback on design and real use cases. That input should help the chain meet the demands of customers and large institutions.
Stripe’s chief executive said current blockchains do not meet the company’s throughput needs. Even fast chains fall short for the kind of volume Stripe handles.
Tempo targets 100,000 transactions per second with sub-second finality. The goal is to match or exceed the speed and reliability needed for payments, global payouts and remittances.
Tempo also aims to make microtransactions and tokenised deposits simpler. To do that, the chain will let users pay fees in stablecoins rather than forcing them to use a separate native token. The design includes an automated market maker to keep the system neutral between different stablecoin issuers.
Technology at a glance
Tempo is EVM-compatible, and it is built on Reth, an Ethereum execution client. The team says this should make it easier for developers who know Ethereum tools to work on Tempo.
The project started inside Stripe but will operate as an independent entity. Paradigm and Stripe are early investors. Paradigm’s CEO leads a small core team of 15 people on the project.
The founders say they want decentralisation and neutrality, and they plan to launch with a diverse set of validators. Over time, the plan is to move toward a permissionless model so more validators can join.
Also Read: Stripe Unveils First Stablecoin Product After $1.1B Bridge Acquisition
Market context
Stablecoins are already large, and they make up about $270 billion in crypto assets today. Supporters say stablecoins could grow far bigger and change how cross-border money moves.
Some predict the market could reach $1 trillion and shift volume away from traditional banking rails by offering a lower-cost, faster option.
Tempo joins several blockchain efforts that aim to capture stablecoin payment flows. The team behind Tempo sees a big chance if they can match the speed and reliability banks and big platforms need.
Related moves and talks
The project first surfaced in August through a job posting, and other reports have suggested fast follow-on efforts. One UnoCrypto report said MetaMask plans to work with Stripe on a new stablecoin called MetaMask USD.
That stablecoin would aim to smooth price swings and make trading altcoins easier. It would use Stripe’s payments network for reach and a blockchain called M^0 for issuance and settlement.
Stripe has also held informal talks with banks about how they might use stablecoins. The company said banks are open to exploring where stablecoins could fit into their services.
Stripe’s co-founder and president said banks are interested in testing the technology rather than dismissing it outright.
What comes next?
Tempo is now entering a period of testing and design with its partners. The project’s backers will likely focus on real payments work and on proving the chain can handle live traffic.
If the network hits its performance targets and the validator plan works, Tempo could become a new option for large-scale stablecoin payments.
Also Read: Stripe Unveils Stablecoin Financial Accounts And AI Payments Model