The venture fund Y Combinator (YC), operating as a business incubator for startups, will enable project founders to receive funding in stablecoins, according to The Block.
This option will be available not only for crypto-focused initiatives but for all YC-supported startups across various sectors, as clarified by the accelerator’s visiting partner, Nemil Dalal, to the publication.
According to him, the company will initially offer funding in USDC from Circle starting in the spring of 2026, across major blockchain networks such as Ethereum, Base, and Solana.
YC has taken this step because stablecoins have reached a “regulatory turning point” following the adoption of the GENIUS Act in the United States. Tokens also offer a cheaper and faster alternative to fiat currency transactions, particularly for founders outside the United States.
“Stablecoin transfers typically cost less than a cent and are processed in under a second, even across borders. Traditional channels like international bank transfers often cost tens of dollars when all fees are considered, and processing can take up to several days,” noted Dalal.
Additionally, financial institutions often require a significant amount of information, whereas a transaction in “stable coins” can be compared to sending a text message, he added.
Dalal noted that the use of stablecoins in real-world conditions is expanding. Some YC portfolio startups operating in markets like India and Latin America use tokens to help clients move capital efficiently and preserve savings, especially where access to banking infrastructure is limited.
YC has invested in nearly 100 crypto projects since including Coinbase in its program in 2012. Stablecoins are a primary focus for the accelerator, but there is also interest in areas such as tokenization, lending markets, and capital formation on the blockchain.
YC estimates that distributed ledger technology will increasingly play a role in financial management and fundraising for projects, even those not related to creating crypto products.
“In the future, we expect that an increasing portion of startups’ financial needs will be met through blockchain,” emphasized Dalal.
In 2025, the volume of real payments in stablecoins amounted to about $390 billion out of a total transaction volume with assets of $35 trillion, according to estimates by McKinsey and Artemis Analytics.
