What is a stablecoin payment gateway?
A stablecoin payment gateway lets a business charge in stablecoins such as USDC. It creates the payment request, shows the customer how to pay from their own wallet and tells the business when the network has confirmed the payment. Some gateways receive the money and keep a balance for you; a non-custodial one, such as Cosmos Pay, has it paid to an address you control.
What a stablecoin is
A stablecoin is a token meant to keep a steady value against a currency, most often the US dollar. It moves on a blockchain like any other token, from one wallet to another, on any day and at any hour.
USDC and EURC are two of them, both issued by Circle. Circle states that USDC can be redeemed one for one for US dollars, and EURC one for one for euros.
What the gateway does
- It creates the payment request (the amount, the asset, the network and the address to pay) as a link and a QR code in the format wallets read: SEP-7 on Stellar, Solana Pay on Solana, EIP-681 on EVM networks such as Monad.
- It shows the customer a checkout page with that request, so they pay from the wallet they already use.
- It watches the network and matches each payment to its request, by a memo, a reference key or an address made for that payment.
- It tells the business once the network confirms the payment, in a dashboard and through a signed webhook to its server.
The SEP-7 standard (Stellar)The Solana Pay specificationThe EIP-681 standard (Ethereum)
Where the money settles
Settlement is the moment the money reaches the business. With a stablecoin it happens on the network itself: once the network confirms the transfer, the payment is final and cannot be charged back. A refund is a new payment the business sends.
Who pays the network fee
Every transfer pays a fee to the network it runs on. With Cosmos Pay the payer’s wallet pays it, on Stellar, Solana and Monad. On Monad each payment goes to an address made for it, and the relay that forwards it to the business takes its fee from the payment; the API reports it on the payment as networkFee.
The gateway’s own fee is separate. Cosmos Pay charges a rate per payment that depends on the plan: 1.5% + 18¢ on Starter, with no monthly fee.
Custodial and non-custodial gateways
A custodial gateway receives the payment into an account it controls and shows you a balance, which you withdraw later. A non-custodial gateway never holds the money: the payment goes to an address whose keys you hold.
The difference is who controls the funds between the sale and the moment you use them, and who keeps the keys. With a non-custodial gateway you keep the keys, so looking after them is up to you.
How Cosmos Pay fits
Cosmos Pay is a non-custodial stablecoin payment gateway on Stellar, Solana and Monad. You charge with a payment link, the hosted checkout or the Payments API, and you choose the wallet addresses that receive the money. Cosmos Pay stores no one’s keys.
On Stellar and Solana your customer pays your address directly. On Monad each payment goes to a deposit address made for it, which can only forward it to your address (less the relay’s fee): Cosmos Pay holds no key to it. Every payment can be checked on the network, and every paid checkout links its transaction on a public explorer.
How payments are protectedHow to accept USDC payments onlineIntegration options
Can a stablecoin payment be charged back?
No. Once the network confirms it, it is final. A refund is a payment the business sends back from its wallet.
Does Cosmos Pay hold my money?
No. On Stellar and Solana the payer pays your address directly. On Monad each payment goes to a deposit address made for it, which can only forward it to your address (less the relay’s fee): Cosmos Pay holds no key to it.
Do I need my own wallet?
Yes. Payments go to an address you control on each network you accept, so the funds are yours from the first payment.
Do my customers need an account?
No account with Cosmos Pay. They need a wallet on the payment’s network that holds the stablecoin.
