In 2018, as Bitcoin traded around $4,000 and skepticism about cryptocurrency persisted, Katie Haun faced off against Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman in a pivotal debate. While Krugman critiqued Bitcoin’s volatility, Haun shifted the focus to stablecoins—a then-nascent concept she believed could revolutionize finance by merging blockchain efficiency with the stability of traditional currency.
A former federal prosecutor and founder of Haun Ventures, Haun’s career has been defined by her efforts to bridge cryptocurrency innovation with mainstream acceptance. Her firm, launched in 2022 with $1.5 billion in assets, champions stablecoins as tools for financial inclusion, particularly in regions plagued by unstable currencies or limited banking access. “People in Turkey don’t think of Tether as a cryptocurrency,” she noted. “They think of it as money.”
Stablecoins like USDC and USDT now dominate global transactions, representing $250 billion in value and outpacing Visa’s transaction volume. Corporations such as Walmart, Amazon, and Apple are exploring their use to cut costs, leveraging blockchain’s speed and affordability. However, critics warn of risks, including opaque reserve practices and the potential for regulatory gaps. The collapse of TerraUSD in 2022, which erased $60 billion, underscored these vulnerabilities.
Political tensions have also sharpened. The recent passage of the GENIUS Act, a bipartisan stablecoin regulation bill, has drawn fire from Senator Elizabeth Warren, who argues it enables conflicts of interest—particularly after the Trump family launched its own stablecoin. Haun, however, dismisses these concerns as premature, emphasizing the need for clear regulatory frameworks to prevent abuse.
Central to Haun’s vision is the tokenization of assets—transforming real estate, private credit, and equities into digital tokens accessible to everyday investors. “Tokenization could democratize finance the way Netflix democratized entertainment,” she explained, envisioning a future where fractional ownership breaks down traditional barriers to entry.
Despite stablecoins accounting for just 2% of global payments, Haun remains optimistic. She likens their adoption to earlier tech revolutions, where gradual acceptance preceded exponential growth. As debates over regulation and innovation continue, Haun’s advocacy positions her at the forefront of a financial transformation—one she insists is inevitable, even if its full impact remains years away.
