Samsung launches Galaxy Wallet's USDC cross-border payment feature for 82 million users

Samsung builds Galaxy Wallet as a cross-border payment tool and supports USDC transfers

Samsung is upgrading its Galaxy Wallet to a cross-border payment tool and plans to open the USDC (U.S. dollar stablecoin) transfer function to 82 million Galaxy devices in the United States in the last week of October 2026. According to the Solana Foundation announcement, this upgrade combines Samsung Wallet with Solana online settlement, with Coinbase hosting stablecoin, and Bastion providing regulated stablecoin infrastructure.

Eligible users can send USDC to compatible crypto wallets abroad or to bank accounts in more than 60 countries around the world. In these countries, recipients can obtain local currency directly without having to open a crypto wallet. Samsung said there is no handling fee for transferring money to compatible external wallets, but the recipient wallet or exchange may charge the relevant fees themselves.

How Samsung USDC Money Transfer Function works

This feature is integrated directly into the Samsung Wallet app rather than a separate encryption application. Galaxy users originally use the app to manage bank cards, boarding passes and ID documents. Users provide funds for transfers through an integrated fiat currency deposit and deposit channel, and send funds through biometric authentication on registered Galaxy devices. Solana processes transfers and settlements in the back office of the network, Sui Network also provides blockchain support, and Coinbase hosts USDC through Coinbase Prime Vault.

Woncheol Chai, head of Samsung's digital wallet team, said: "Sending money abroad should be as convenient as using a wallet already in your mobile phone. We have introduced USDC transfer capabilities to Samsung Wallet, allowing eligible Galaxy users to start using them immediately without having to install other apps or manage their own private keys."

Significance of this move for the popularity of stablecoins

This integration provides cryptocurrency companies with a token distribution channel that is difficult for them to build themselves. By embedding USDC into payment applications already installed on tens of millions of mobile phones, this release promotes stablecoins from speculative transactions to remittance products, where recipients can directly receive bank fiat currencies without having to touch crypto-wallets. Samsung said in August this year that it plans to add stablecoin savings and payment functions to hundreds of millions of Galaxy phones, and this deployment in the United States is its first large-scale promotion.

Foundation data highlights the driving force of this trend: The supply of stablecoins on the Solana network has increased by nearly 20% year-on-year, and in 2026 alone, the network handles more than US$5.25 trillion in stablecoin transactions. The integration also landed on a network where large companies such as PayPal and Western Union already carry out stablecoin activities, putting Samsung on a par with mature payment companies. This release continues Solana's advancement in payment and settlement infrastructure. Solana has previously launched projects such as DvP atomic settlement and joined the broader stablecoin payment tracks, including connecting USDC settlement to bank payment hubs through Circle and Volante.

Possible changes caused by this release

Analysts and industry executives see the move as a way to achieve mainstream adoption of stablecoins. "Mass adoption will never come from people downloading encrypted apps, but from the phone you already have in your pocket," said Kevin Lehtiniitty, CEO of Borderless.xyz. He expects Apple and Google to follow suit. Lily Liu, president of the Solana Foundation, pointed out that stablecoins "have proven technically feasible" but lack a path to the mainstream, and Samsung fills the gap.

Timing is crucial because cross-border remittances remain one of the few stablecoin applications with clear and sustained demand. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)'s 2026 annual report points out that low transaction costs are the main driving force behind the rapid expansion of cross-border stablecoin use, and Samsung's release translates this demand into products that consumers can use on their daily portable devices.

Future Development Outlook

Samsung has not announced when this feature will be extended outside the United States, and future availability will depend on local regulations. The company said it may enable online stablecoin payments and touch-to-touch payment transactions on eligible Galaxy phones in the future. A deployment of this scale would also trigger review by more than 60 receiving market payments and banking regulators. The key to the open test is whether Samsung can maintain a fee-free USDC transfer service as competitive wallet and mobile phone makers weigh their own stablecoin integration options.