TL;DR
- Meta has launched payments in the stablecoin USDC to content creators in Colombia and the Philippines
- Payments are processed via Stripe on the Solana and Polygon blockchains
- Meta does not issue its own cryptocurrency, but uses Circle's regulated USDC
- The pilot is a strategic restart after the Diem project was shut down in 2022
Meta has taken a new step into crypto payments. The company is now running a pilot program where content creators in Colombia and the Philippines receive fees in the stablecoin USDC, according to The Defiant. Payments are processed through Stripe, which also handles tax reporting, and sent over the Solana and Polygon blockchains.
Diem is Dead – Long Live USDC
This is not Meta's first attempt to establish itself in the crypto payment market. In 2019, the company launched plans for its own digital currency called Libra, which was later renamed Diem. The project faced massive political and regulatory opposition, including from then-US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who in 2019 expressed «serious concerns about privacy, money laundering, consumer protection, and financial stability». Then-Diem CEO Stuart Levey confirmed that it «became clear through dialogue with federal regulators that the project could not proceed». Diem was formally wound down in 2022.
This time, the strategy is fundamentally different. Instead of issuing a self-developed token, Meta is using Circle's established and regulated stablecoin USDC. A Meta spokesperson states, according to The Defiant, that the company «is exploring how stablecoins can become part of our overall payment portfolio».
Recipients Must Convert to Local Currency Themselves
Creators participating in the pilot receive USDC directly into compatible crypto wallets. Meta does not offer conversion to Colombian pesos or Philippine pesos – that responsibility falls on the creators themselves, who must use third-party exchanges for conversion.
The choice of Colombia and the Philippines is not accidental. In 2024, the Philippines had remittances from abroad totaling $38.3 billion, and stablecoins are considered a potential tool to cut costs and delays in cross-border payments. Both countries have large creator economies where traditional international transfers are associated with high fees.
Regulatory Uncertainty in Both Countries
The pilot operates in a complex regulatory landscape. In Colombia, there is currently no comprehensive legal framework for stablecoins from the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia (SFC), although authorities have established a regulatory sandbox called «La Arenera» for crypto innovation. Colombian banks are simultaneously prohibited from holding or directly facilitating crypto transactions.
From December 2025, Colombia introduced mandatory reporting of crypto transactions to the tax authority DIAN, in line with the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF). All transactions over $150 trigger requirements for full identification of sender and receiver. Fines for non-compliance are reported to have exceeded $1.5 million in the past year, according to available information.
In the Philippines, the central bank Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is cautious in its approach. As of October 2025, the BSP maintains an indefinite moratorium on new licenses for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP). The classification of stablecoins is also not clarified – it is decided on a case-by-case basis whether they should be treated as securities.
International Context
The IMF already emphasized in 2023 that effective regulation of crypto assets has become a priority for authorities worldwide, following collapses in the crypto market. The US GENIUS Act for stablecoin regulation, which is under consideration, is referred to by experts as a possible reference point for other countries. Lawyer Camilo Gantiva Hidalgo describes the law as «a paradigm shift because it sets minimum standards for licensing, backing, consumer protection, and operational structure» for stablecoin issuers.
Meta's pilot program is a limited but symbolically important step. The company is testing whether third-party stablecoin infrastructure can do what they couldn't achieve themselves with Diem – namely, to deliver fast and cheap cross-border payments at scale. How far the pilot goes depends largely on regulatory developments in both countries – and whether Meta succeeds in navigating a far more complex crypto environment than in 2019.
