Australia’s first AFSL-regulated stablecoin issuer is in final-stage discussions regarding several institutional-focused partnerships, Macropod has confirmed.
CEO Drew Bradford said the firm hopes to make an announcement in the coming weeks, following the recent listing of Macropod’s AUDM – a fully backed Australian dollar stablecoin – on crypto exchange Independent Reserve.
“For the digital asset market to truly scale, it needs a dependable digital currency. AUDM will help drive that growth by dramatically reducing the cost of everyday transactions, cutting friction in payments, and opening up wholesale-level pricing for all participants in cross-border payment flows,” Bradford told InvestorDaily.
Backed 1:1 by cash reserves held in segregated trust accounts at Australian banks, AUDM provides investors with a transparent and reliable way to hold Australian dollar value on-chain.
“I see AUDM working alongside traditional banking solutions and simply reducing friction,” Bradford said.
Macropod says its integration into Independent Reserve allows users to avoid common pain points associated with legacy banking rails, including transfer delays, weekday cut-offs, and slow cross-border payments.
“We weren’t the first stablecoin in Australia, but we were the first to be licensed by ASIC. That regulatory certainty – coupled with the fact that our reserves are held on deposit with a major Australian bank – provides a strong foundation of trust and confidence for both institutional and retail users.”
Bradford added that for investors, this regulatory distinction offers heightened confidence around asset backing, oversight, and compliance — factors that have become increasingly critical in digital asset markets.
Independent Reserve CEO Adrian Przelozny said that in a market where speed and reliability are essential, AUDM helps eliminate many of the friction points tied to traditional banking, enabling traders to remain agile and focused on opportunities.
“This integration underscores our dedication to innovation while prioritising compliance and user security,” Przelozny said.
Macropod is now preparing to expand AUDM’s reach, with cross-border payments set to be a key priority.
“Stablecoins like AUDM can help the G20 advance its Roadmap to enhance cross-border payment efficiency. While domestic payments in Australia are relatively efficient, they remain costly – and we aim to help address that,” Bradford said.
A recent report, APAC’s Digital Asset Adoption 2025: stablecoins, tokenisation and integration by CoinDesk and Protocol Theory, noted that stablecoins have become a central component of the region’s digital-finance landscape, shifting from a niche asset to a functional payment rail.
“Asia-Pacific has long been the testing ground for financial innovation. It is now becoming the proving ground for accessible finance,” the report said. “In highly banked markets like Japan and Australia, usage has stabilized as crypto becomes an additional investment or utility layer within existing financial systems.”
Stablecoins, the report explains, highlight the gap between what is available and what is accessible. “In theory, most adults in APAC could acquire them. In practice, few find the process simple.”
“Over the past year, [stablecoins] have evolved from a niche within crypto markets to a structural pillar of Asia–Pacific’s emerging digital-finance ecosystem. Their appeal lies in stability, speed, and familiarity – qualities that bridge the volatility of Web3 innovation with the reliability of traditional money.”
Total global stablecoin supply now exceeds US$250 billion, facilitating roughly US$26 trillion in annual on-chain transaction volume, with about US$1.3 trillion already connected to real-world payments for goods and services. Citi estimates that at current growth rates, stablecoins could facilitate around US$100 trillion in annual transaction volume by 2030 under its base scenario – and potentially as much as US$200 trillion in an accelerated case – driven by a projected fiftyfold increase in transaction velocity.
Macropod’s Bradford said the addressable market is considerable.
“In the US, USD stablecoins represent around 1.5 per cent of domestic M2 money supply. Applying the same ratio to Australia implies a potential market of approximately A$20 billion,” Bradford said.
APAC’s Digital Asset Adoption 2025 argues that the next phase of growth in the region will be defined not by technological potential but by seamless integration into everyday life. “The future of adoption will be measured by inclusion: by how easily people can reach, understand, and use these tools in daily life,” the report said.
Bradford added: “Stablecoins are the future, and the Genius Act will likely be remembered as the tipping point that prompts other countries to follow with similar legislation. Today, money still moves much the same way it did 50 years ago – especially across borders. Stablecoins are to SWIFT what email was to physical mail.”
