B2B Vault: The Biz to Biz Podcast — Coinbase Business, Stablecoins and the Future of Payments
Discover how Coinbase Business is using stablecoins and AI to change global payments, reduce transaction costs and help small businesses grow.
Presented by Allen Kopelman, CEO — Nationwide Payment Systems-Host of B2B Vault: The Biz2Biz Podcast
AI OVERVIEW
In this B2B Vault episode, Allen Kopelman and Sid Coelho-Prabhu discuss how Coinbase Business uses stablecoins to support international payments and emerging AI-driven commerce. The platform’s invoicing, bank connections, and refund tools aim to make crypto payments more practical for businesses. Potential benefits include faster transfers and lower costs, but businesses still need to evaluate compliance, fraud risk, consumer protections, and controls on AI spending.
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How Stablecoins, AI Agents, and International Payments Are Reshaping B2B Commerce
What if your business could accept payments from customers anywhere in the world, receive money in seconds instead of days, and significantly reduce the costs associated with traditional payment processing?
What if artificial intelligence could purchase software, pay vendors, and complete transactions on behalf of your business without human intervention?
These aren't just futuristic ideas—businesses are already putting these technologies to work. On an episode of B2B Vault: The Biz to Biz Podcast, host Allen Kopelman, CEO of Nationwide Payment Systems, sits down with Sid Coelho-Prabhu, Head of Coinbase Business, to discuss how stablecoins, cryptocurrency, and artificial intelligence are reshaping modern commerce.
From international transactions and chargeback risk to autonomous AI shopping agents, here is what business owners need to understand about the next generation of payments.
What Are Stablecoins, and Why Should Businesses Care?
Cryptocurrency has been around for years, but many business owners still associate it with price volatility and complicated technology.
Stablecoins offer a different approach. A stablecoin is a digital asset designed to maintain a stable value relative to another asset, typically the U.S. dollar. Dollar-backed stablecoins, such as USDC, aim to maintain a one-to-one value with the dollar through reserve arrangements. Unlike traditional cryptocurrencies, they provide a more predictable way to transfer value digitally (though they are not completely risk-free or guaranteed to maintain their peg).
Sid Coelho-Prabhu explains that stablecoins combine the familiarity of U.S. dollars with the speed of blockchain technology.
Potential Business Advantages:
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Faster settlement: Domestic and international transfers complete in seconds rather than days.
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Lower transaction costs: Reduces intermediary network and wire fees in many scenarios.
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Global reach: Accept payments from international customers without border friction.
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No traditional chargebacks: Transactions are final once confirmed on the blockchain.
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Machine-to-machine payments: Enables automated micro-transactions for software and AI workflows.
AI Agents Are Becoming the Next Generation of Customers
Most businesses are familiar with AI tools that generate content, answer questions, or recommend products. But what happens when AI stops recommending products and starts purchasing them?
This concept—known as agentic commerce—occurs when AI agents research products, compare pricing, buy cloud resources, or renew software subscriptions autonomously.
Instead of navigating a traditional checkout web page with credit cards and billing addresses, AI agents hit APIs directly. They require payment infrastructure capable of handling automated, frequent, high-volume transactions, often at small dollar amounts.
Traditional Checkout: Human -> Web Browser -> Credit Card Form -> Manual Entry -> Processing
Agentic Commerce: AI Agent -> Server API -> Machine Protocol -> Instant Token Transfer
Preventing AI Overspending
Giving an autonomous AI agent unrestricted access to a credit card or bank account creates significant financial exposure. To address this risk, businesses can use dedicated digital wallets.
By creating separate wallets, allocating limited funds, and placing strict permissions and spending caps, businesses ensure their AI tools operate within controlled boundaries.
Machine-to-Machine Payment Infrastructure (x402 Protocol)
Coinbase Business developed a payment protocol called x402 designed specifically to allow software systems to communicate payment requirements and complete transactions machine-to-machine.
Consider an AI agent building a website:
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The agent identifies the need for a domain name, cloud hosting, and proprietary database access.
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The agent queries supplier APIs built to receive digital currency.
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The systems perform an automated payment handshake using the x402 protocol.
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The domain, hosting, and data credits are purchased instantly without human intervention.
This infrastructure powers digital ecosystem services including domain registration, cloud computing, data feeds, and AI model credits.
Unlocking Global B2B Opportunities
For small and midsize businesses, international payments remain complicated. Cross-border bank wires involve multiple financial institutions, compliance checks, currency conversions, and days of delay. International credit card transactions carry high fees, elevated decline rates, and significant dispute risks.
Stablecoins remove traditional banking friction. An overseas client with access to a stablecoin wallet can issue a dollar-denominated payment instantly.
Converting Stablecoins to Fiat Currency
A common merchant concern is how to pay rent, payroll, and local expenses if revenue is received digitally. Platforms like Coinbase Business allow eligible companies to connect traditional business bank accounts (via integrations like Plaid). Funds can be automatically converted and deposited into linked bank accounts daily or weekly, or transferred out to pay overseas vendors directly.
Comparing Payment Rails: Credit Cards vs. Stablecoins
| Feature | Traditional Credit Cards | Dollar Stablecoins (USDC) |
| Settlement Time | 1 to 3 Business Days | Seconds (24/7/365) |
| Transaction Fees | 1.5% to 3.5%+ per transaction | Typically less than $0.01 per transaction |
| Dispute / Chargeback Risk | High merchant chargeback exposure | No traditional card chargeback mechanism |
| Cross-Border Friction | High fees, decline risks, currency conversion delays | Frictionless global transfer via internet access |
| Consumer Protection | Built-in cardholder dispute mechanisms | Requires merchant-side refund tools & policies |
Note: While stablecoins eliminate traditional credit card chargeback fraud, merchants remain legally obligated to deliver promised goods, follow consumer protection laws, and maintain clear refund policies.
Compliance, Underwriting, and Industry Adoption
Accepting digital assets does not mean operating in an unregulated environment. Institutional providers implement strict Know Your Business (KYB) verification, sanctions screening, anti-money laundering (AML) controls, and transaction monitoring. Prohibited merchant categories (such as illicit products or unlicensed operations) remain restricted.
Stablecoin adoption is expanding beyond cryptocurrency startups into mainstream sectors, including:
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Luxury goods and high-ticket retail
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Automobile marketplaces
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Law firms representing international clients
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Overseas vendor and contractor payroll
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Digital service and AI infrastructure providers
Five Key Takeaways for Business Owners
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Stablecoins Streamline Global Operations: They offer a fast, low-cost method for international invoicing and cross-border settlements.
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Prepare for Agentic Commerce: As AI agents begin buying products autonomously, businesses with API-friendly payment rails will be positioned to capture new automated sales.
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Establish Spending Controls: Autonomous AI spending must be paired with dedicated wallets, permission limits, and active monitoring.
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Understand Dispute Differences: Blockchain transactions reduce card chargeback fraud, but merchant accountability, refund capabilities, and legal obligations remain critical.
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Optimize Your Payment Mix: Modern businesses don't need to eliminate credit cards or ACH; instead, adding digital payment options gives customers and vendors options tailored to transaction size and location.
Full Episode Transcript
The following transcript has been edited for spelling, punctuation, capitalization, speaker identification, and readability while preserving the original conversation and meaning.
B2B Vault: The Biz to Biz Podcast
Host: Allen Kopelman, CEO of Nationwide Payment Systems
Guest: Sid Coelho-Prabhu, Head of Coinbase Business
Introduction: Meet Sid Coelho-Prabhu
Allen Kopelman:
You're now watching B2B Vault, the Biz to Biz Podcast, hosted by Allen Kopelman, powered by Nationwide Payment Systems, the number one solution for payment processing.
Hey, everybody. Welcome to B2B Vault, the Biz to Biz Podcast—the place where you get educated about business and everything about business, from AI to sales, marketing, payments, and fintech. We talk about it all, and today we're going to be talking about cryptocurrency, stablecoins, and AI.
Our special guest today is Sid Coelho-Prabhu, Head of Coinbase Business. It's very exciting to have somebody from Coinbase here on the podcast today at B2B Vault. So let's jump right into it. Sid, introduce yourself to the audience.
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Hey Allen, and hey listeners, thanks for having me. I'm Sid, and I run Coinbase Business, which is the product we built for small businesses and startups. Over the last few years, we've seen a ton of interest from businesses adopting crypto. Some want to invest, some want to trade, and some want to make or accept payments—now including payments from AI agents. That's what we do: we serve businesses.
I've been at Coinbase a long time. Before this, I built Coinbase Wallet, which is our self-custody wallet product that some of your viewers may have used. I'm very excited to bring Coinbase Business to as many businesses as possible and make a lot of their payment troubles go away.
Allen Kopelman:
Yeah, it's a very interesting concept. We were doing payments with crypto a few years ago, and then the tax requirements popped up, and it dried up. But I'm a big believer in digital currency.
What Happens When Customers Are AI Agents?
Allen Kopelman:
We spent decades building payment systems centered entirely around humans—credit cards, bank accounts, checkout pages, and fraud controls. What fundamentally has to change when a customer is an AI agent making a purchase?
I heard a story recently about an executive whose AI was listening to him mention wanting an AI robot dog. A few days later, a box arrived at his house with the AI dog inside! There have to be controls on the user side so someone isn't buying expensive items just because they talked about them. How do you see AI agents making purchases in the future?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
You hit the nail on the head. The big trend is that AI agents are now shopping on the internet, and that's new. People use ChatGPT every day, but now agents are autonomously going out and buying things—sometimes for humans, and sometimes for autonomous businesses setting up websites and digital infrastructure.
Existing payment methods were designed for humans using web browsers. You enter personal information, shipping addresses, credit card numbers, and CAPTCHAs. AI agents don't use browsers; they hit website APIs directly.
Furthermore, AI agents can operate 24/7 from anywhere in the cloud globally. If an agent is purchasing digital infrastructure or data, it might execute 1,000 transactions in 20 seconds. No traditional fiat payment system can handle getting hammered 1,000 times in a few seconds. You need payment systems adapted for fast, frequent, small, API-driven transactions. That reinvention is called agentic commerce.
Managing AI Financial Exposure & Spending Limits
Allen Kopelman:
Users definitely need controls so AI doesn't go crazy and bankrupt someone.
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Exactly. AI agents hallucinate and make mistakes. You don't want them having direct access to your primary credit card or main bank account, or you might wake up to a $10,000 bill.
The reason AI developers and business owners prefer crypto and stablecoins for agents is that you can easily set up segregated wallets. You can establish spending limits, set permissions, and sandbox funds away from your primary financial accounts.
Allen Kopelman:
It streamlines search and discovery, too. Instead of searching through multiple sites for a product, you can instruct an AI agent to find and purchase an item within set parameters.
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Right. For an agent to complete a transaction seamlessly on your behalf, it needs a secure digital wallet that you trust with specific spending limits. That's the technology infrastructure we've been building at Coinbase.
Understanding Stablecoins: Faster, Cheaper, Global Payments
Allen Kopelman:
Why are stablecoins better suited for machine-to-machine payments versus credit cards, ACH, or traditional bank wires? Could you give a quick explainer on what a stablecoin is?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Essentially, a dollar-backed stablecoin takes a U.S. dollar deposited in a bank reserve and issues a digital coin on the blockchain backed 1:1 by that dollar.
That dollar gains all the speed and frictionless benefits of digital data on the internet. Instead of moving through bank wires, ACH fees, and delays, it moves across fast blockchains. You can send dollars to anyone in the world with internet access for fractions of a cent, settling in under a second.
Comparing that to credit card processing fees or international wire delays, stablecoins provide near-instant, low-cost, global settlement ideal for modern commerce.
Compliance, Security, and Transaction Monitoring
Allen Kopelman:
When money moves internationally through traditional banking, it passes through banks, FDIC oversight, and SWIFT checks to inspect funds origin. How does Coinbase handle compliance and security for digital transactions?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
We run extensive transaction monitoring systems. Coinbase is a regulated, compliant financial services company licensed across U.S. states and jurisdictions.
Our automated background systems continuously monitor for money laundering, terrorist financing, or illicit activity. Businesses get the security and regulatory certainty of a compliant platform alongside accounting integrations with software like QuickBooks and Xero. You get speed, global reach, and low fees without compromising security or regulatory compliance.
Real-World Examples: What Are AI Agents and Businesses Buying Today?
Allen Kopelman:
What does a real-world transaction look like from start to finish?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Coinbase Business has processed over $1 billion in on-chain payments across hundreds of thousands of transactions.
The earliest adopters are in the digital infrastructure economy—companies like OpenRouter that sell access to AI models. Agents buy compute credits, hire sub-agents, purchase domain names, or pay for cloud hosting on AWS.
We created a machine-to-machine payment protocol called x402 that allows computers to communicate payment terms and complete transactions directly. One computer states the price for data or hosting, the agent pays in stablecoins, and the transaction finalizes in one second.
Beyond AI, traditional businesses use stablecoins, too:
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Automobile marketplaces and luxury goods: Reducing high credit card fees and eliminating chargeback risks.
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Law firms: Receiving fast, low-cost payments from overseas clients represented on U.S. legal matters.
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Cross-border trade: Supplying goods globally without international wire delays.
Converting Digital Payments to Fiat Currency
Allen Kopelman:
When a business receives stablecoin payments, how do they convert those funds to pay traditional expenses like rent and local suppliers?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
When setting up a Coinbase Business account, you link your existing business bank account via Plaid.
If you accept stablecoins on your website or invoice, you can use automated routing rules to automatically cash out funds to your local bank account daily or weekly. Conversely, if you need to pay a contractor overseas in USDC, funds can be drawn from your bank account and sent instantly.
Solving International Payment Friction and Chargebacks
Allen Kopelman:
In 25 years of merchant services, I've seen how difficult international credit card payments can be for U.S. merchants. If an overseas customer disputes a charge, merchants have very little recourse. Stablecoins eliminate traditional card chargebacks, correct?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
100%. Once money is received on the blockchain, it's final—there are no payment reversals or card chargeback fraud.
International credit cards suffer high decline rates because card issuers frequently flag cross-border transactions as fraud. Good international customers get declined, and merchants lose legitimate sales. Accepting stablecoins gives international customers an easy way to pay without card decline issues or merchant chargeback exposure.
Allen Kopelman:
As a consumer, I use credit cards for fraud protection and rewards. Will dispute mechanisms and consumer protections develop for stablecoin payments over time?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Yes. While finality protects merchants from fraud, consumer protections remain important. Coinbase Business includes refund tools so merchants can easily process returns. As adoption grows, industry tools will continue to evolve to balance merchant certainty with consumer protections.
Furthermore, because merchants save on credit card interchange (2.5%–3.5%) and chargeback losses, many choose to pass those savings directly to customers as discounts for paying via stablecoins.
Underwriting and Business Verification
Allen Kopelman:
Are there restricted or prohibited business types that Coinbase Business will not onboard?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Yes. As a regulated entity, we enforce Know Your Business (KYB) verification during onboarding.
We screen for criminal history and restrict prohibited categories such as firearms, illicit substances, and unlicensed pharmaceuticals. Our platform is built for mainstream businesses, law firms, software providers, marketplaces, and traditional merchants seeking safer, more efficient payment options.
The Multi-Rail Future of Global Commerce
Allen Kopelman:
Where is business availability currently supported?
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Coinbase Business is currently available for merchants registered in the United States and Singapore, while customers paying those merchants can be located anywhere globally. We are actively expanding merchant availability to additional international markets.
Allen Kopelman:
Whether a business sells physical goods overseas, provides digital services, or prepares for AI-driven commerce, digital assets offer an efficient way to accept payments and improve cash flow.
Thank you for joining us on B2B Vault, Sid.
Sid Coelho-Prabhu:
Thanks for having me, Allen! Try out Coinbase Business and see what fast, low-cost global payments look like.
Allen Kopelman:
Thanks to everyone for tuning in. Visit Nationwide Payment Systems
CEO - Nationwide Payment Systems
