Cross-border B2B payment’s main obstacles lie not in the payment itself, but in incomplete workflows, including issues related to data management, regulatory complexity, tax matters, and approval chains. While stablecoins can improve payment execution, they cannot resolve complex workflows on their own. Truly successful projects should integrate stablecoins through automated processes, optimize workflows, enhance transparency, reduce errors, and achieve efficiency and compliance in global payments. This comprehensive approach will drive the development of global payment businesses, creating vast market opportunities. This article is derived from @DeFi_Cheetah’s “Stablecoin B2B Payment is all about Workflows, not Payment itself,” organized, edited, and written by Zhouzhou, BlockBeats.
(Background Summary: Citibank’s Stablecoin Research Report on the digital dollar, crypto punk, and government banks)
(Background Supplement: Tether’s cross-chain stablecoin USDT0 lands on Flare! $FLR soars 18%, is the XRP DeFi ecosystem benefiting?)
B2B payment systems are often perceived as merely pressing the “send” button to transfer funds from one entity to another. Many stablecoin projects adopt this viewpoint, focusing on improving transaction channels—such as checks, wire transfers, or digital transfers—while overlooking the critical domain-specific processes before and after the transfer. In reality:
B2B payments are the end result of extensive workflows, most of which concentrate on data validation, compliance or regulatory steps, and multi-party approvals before funds can be transferred.
This gap between the notion of “we just need to pay someone” and the reality of “we must first confirm multiple contracts and operational details” becomes particularly evident in cross-border transactions, where unique legal frameworks, local tax regulations, and exchange rate fluctuations complicate operations. In fact, digital assets—especially stablecoins (e.g., @hadickM)—are becoming increasingly relevant in these workflows, and when combined with robust workflow automation, they offer a potential simplified pathway for fund flows.
This article seeks to argue that the introduction of stablecoins should not be merely seen as an efficiency gain at the “payment execution” level; rather, it must be integrated into a workflow-centric solution to unlock the trillion-dollar opportunities mentioned by @PanteraCapital. I believe the most valuable layer in the stablecoin payment stack is the orchestration layer, which, as @robbiepetersen_ states, can simplify complex workflows and cover as many regions as possible.
Hierarchy of Demand in B2B Payments
A useful conceptual tool is to view B2B payments as a layered “hierarchy of demand.” These layers include:
- Data collection and invoice management
- B2B transactions often involve gathering vendor information, parsing invoices, and reconciling them with purchase orders or delivery records.
- Compliance and regulatory checks
- Companies must verify that vendors comply with local or international regulations, including KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) requirements.
- Tax reconciliation
- Determining the correct local and cross-border tax obligations—such as withholding tax or value-added tax—can be very complicated, especially when transporting goods internationally.
- Approval and auditing
- Many organizations require multi-layered approval chains. The audit trail of approvals and real-time visibility further complicate workflows.
- Payment execution
- The final transfer of funds—traditionally through checks, ACH, wire transfers, or other channels—sits atop this structure.
By recognizing that payment execution relies on its underlying components, solution providers can design comprehensive systems that handle all stages, thus avoiding failures or delays due to insufficient data tracking, compliance shortfalls, or incomplete approval chains.
Cross-border Payment Workflows: Real Bottlenecks
Cross-border B2B payments amplify the challenges present in domestic payment environments:
- Regulatory complexity
- Each jurisdiction has unique requirements for foreign exchange transactions, involving not only AML/KYC but often requiring specific documentation related to trade laws and customs.
- Detailed tax obligations
- From import duties to value-added tax, cross-border transactions require precise tracking and sometimes necessitate apportioning tax liabilities across multiple parties in different regions.
- Extended approval layers
- Subsidiaries and parent companies often have complex signing procedures. Any mismatches in local compliance, product classification, or documentation can prevent timely payments.
In many cases, these complexities pose greater barriers to timely and accurate payments than the friction of the payment channels themselves.
Industry Examples Illustrating
Freight and Logistics: Freight Audits and More
Background: In freight and logistics, multiple carriers charge for transportation, loading, surcharges, and even penalties for early/late arrivals. Fuel price fluctuations and complex multi-leg transportation arrangements can lead to very complicated invoices.
Workflow pain points: The core challenge lies not in simply pressing the “pay the trucking company” button, but in how to reliably match these costs with agreements, verify whether the weight of goods and transportation distances are accurately calculated, and consider potential exceptions.
Why it matters: B2B payment solutions that focus solely on seamless payment interfaces miss the larger issue of validating invoice details—this aspect is often still managed by large teams or outsourced business process outsourcing (BPO) companies. A better approach is to integrate with shipping files, track changes to plans or goods, and detect invoice errors before payment.
Real-world example: Loop focuses first on auditing and workflow logic before adding payment functionality. Another example could be an AI solution that automatically scans and parses shipping files, pushing exceptions into a queue, unlocking the payment mechanism only after this.
Construction and Upstream Supply Chains
Background: Construction projects involve multiple layers of suppliers (from lumber, cement to electrical and mechanical subsystems). Tax burdens vary by region and project type.
Workflow pain points: Contractors need to not only pay for “50 cubic yards of concrete” but confirm that the procurement is linked to a specific project or permit, apply the correct local taxes, and ensure the procurement is authorized under the correct work order code.
Why it matters: Merely accelerating transactions—without capturing or automating these approvals—does not solve the larger problem. Automating these checks, integrating with construction permits, coordinating with subcontractor budgets, and simplifying partial deliveries in B2B solutions can provide more lasting value to end-users.
Real-world example: Nickel integrates with tax calculation engines to manage the complexity of different tax rates for the same goods, depending on usage, buyer classification, and location. Other vendors may embed material usage forms and generate compliance files before triggering any payments.
Fuel Cards and Expense Management
Background: Managing fleets of trucks, cars, devices, or company vehicles involves controlling a large amount of operational expenses.
Workflow pain points: Fuel is an obvious expense, but drivers equally easily spend money on non-category projects (e.g., snacks, etc.).
Background
Personal fuel or items not approved by the company. Therefore, control and visualization are more important than merely “paying for fuel.”
Why It Matters
Tools like Wex, Fleetcor, Mudflap, AtoB, and Coast effectively combine purchase transactions with real-time policy controls, allowing managers to see whether drivers are purchasing items unrelated to the fleet—and optimizing the choice of cheaper gas stations.
Real-World Example
A solution might integrate vehicle communication and route optimization software to detect anomalies in mileage or fuel consumption, flagging suspicious purchasing behavior, allowing transactions to flow only after relevant approvals or checks have been passed.
Vendor Management and Invoice Approval
Background: Large companies may have thousands of vendors, with invoices in various formats—some digital, some in PDF, and some even on paper.
Workflow Pain Points
The accounts payable team must ensure that each invoice is valid, not duplicated, allocated to the correct budget codes, and complies with relevant vendor agreements.
Why It Matters
The “payment” step may be the simplest part—just writing a check or sending an ACH. However, verifying a $3500 invoice’s accuracy or whether $100 has been overcharged can consume a significant amount of manual work.
Real-World Example
Solutions like Tipalti, Coupa, or SAP Concur embed invoice receipt, expense management, and vendor onboarding processes. They transform chaotic data into standardized entries, allowing for multi-level approvals, handling necessary currency conversions, only triggering fund release thereafter.
SaaS Platform Sales Commissions
Background: SaaS companies typically set up complex commission structures for sales teams, with different percentages and bonuses applicable based on product type, region, or subscription level.
Workflow Pain Points
Calculating and verifying each commission may be more complex than simply paying sales representatives their bonus checks. Discrepancies can lead to disputes and dissatisfaction.
Why It Matters
Automating a correct and transparent commission structure requires a robust system that integrates with CRM data, tracks subscription usage or expanded packages, and considers allocations among multiple sales representatives.
Real-World Example
Platforms like CaptivateIQ or Spiff focus on resolving data and workflow issues related to commission calculations. Before payment preparation is completed, the system has already optimized a large volume of data and automatically handled special cases, avoiding error-prone spreadsheets.
Integrating Stablecoin Payments into Workflows for Efficiency
While traditional payment methods (such as checks, ACH, SWIFT) can be slow and costly, especially in cross-border payments, stablecoins have become a powerful alternative for settling digital payments. Here are some key considerations (as mentioned by @proofofnathan):
Reducing Settlement Time
Stablecoins can provide near-instant settlement, bypassing the multiple intermediary banks typically involved in cross-border remittances. This feature is particularly beneficial when workflows ensure that all operational conditions are met and approvals are completed, preventing unnecessary payment delays.
Automating Compliance Checks
Workflow platforms integrating stablecoin transfers can be designed to initiate on-chain payments only when specific smart contract conditions are met—such as vendor identity verification, compliance file clearance, or proof of delivery. This automated compliance process reduces manual intervention and errors.
Transparent Forex Management
In many stablecoin arrangements, assets are often pegged to major currencies (like the US dollar), minimizing the impact of exchange rate fluctuations. This transparency can simplify payment reconciliation and accounting. Moreover, integrating stablecoin payment channels with advanced workflows can automatically convert stablecoins to local currency for final recipients, reducing the complexity of manual financial management.
Micro-Transaction Cost Savings
If B2B transactions involve small periodic payments across borders—for instance, paying micro-invoices to overseas contractors—stablecoins can reduce fixed transaction costs. A workflow approach can bundle or schedule these payments to optimize gas fees or network costs on certain blockchain infrastructures.
Expanded Suite Value-Added Services
Once companies integrate stablecoins into payment workflows, new opportunities become feasible. Features supporting instant financing, real-time invoice discounting, or embedded dynamic discounts can be encoded into the workflow. Stablecoin-based systems can facilitate these functionalities with minimal friction.
Advantages of Workflow Priority Strategies in Cross-Border Payments
Increasing Transparency and Auditability: By emphasizing documented automatic approvals, organizations ensure that every step—from KYC and AML checks to contract matching—is thoroughly tracked. This process reduces disputes and compliance risks.
Minimizing Manual Touchpoints
Human oversight at each stage can lead to delays and errors. Adopting an end-to-end workflow approach—where the final stage may involve stablecoin settlement—automates and simplifies interactions, significantly shortening overall cycle time.
Scalable Suite Solutions for Global Expansion
Companies relying on ad hoc cross-border payment methods often struggle to scale suite businesses. In contrast, workflow platforms integrated with stablecoin payment channels and dynamic compliance management can enter new markets more rapidly and cost-effectively.
Bundled Value Proposition
Companies that merely offer “payment” functionality have limited differentiation. Those able to handle documentation, compliance burdens, and payment flows within a single integrated platform will become indispensable partners for customers, ensuring more stable, higher-profit business relationships.
Conclusion
While traditional views regard B2B payments primarily as efficient capital transfer issues, the real barriers to cross-border payment efficiency lie in incomplete or inadequate workflows.
These limitations stem from fragmented data management, complex regulatory requirements, extended approval chains, and uncertain tax obligations. Although many stablecoin projects aim to improve existing payment channels, stablecoins alone cannot address these multifaceted workflow issues.
While these stablecoin projects position themselves as execution layers for payments, I believe that projects adopting a systematic, workflow-first mindset to address these foundational issues and achieve faster, more transparent, and error-free global payments will be the winners capturing the largest share of the payments market.
These projects need to build robust tools embedded with thoughtful automation processes to verify vendor qualifications, reconcile invoices, manage taxes, and execute multi-level approvals.
Those projects taking a holistic approach—optimizing workflow orchestration and leveraging stablecoin efficiency—belong to the trillion-dollar opportunity. They can not only provide faster, more economical international payment services but also seamlessly integrate compliance, tax, and documentation requirements.
This synergy not only enhances everyday payment operations but also enables companies to tap into emerging markets, launch new financial products, and create lasting competitive differentiation in the global B2B financial landscape.
