PayPal Expands PYUSD to 70 Countries — 4% Yield and 13 Blockchains

Payments giant PayPal announced on March 17, 2026 the expansion of its PYUSD stablecoin access to 70 countries worldwide. Previously available only in the US and UK, the token can now be used by millions of users across Africa, South America, and Asia. PYUSD's market capitalization has reached $4.1 billion, with the token operating on 13 blockchains.

68 new markets in a single day

The company simultaneously onboarded 68 new countries into the PYUSD ecosystem. Among them are Uganda, Colombia, Peru, Malawi, and dozens of other markets with high cross-border transfer costs. For these regions, PYUSD offers a fundamentally new capability — storing funds in dollar-equivalent value directly within a PayPal wallet.

Users in the new countries gain access to core operations: holding, sending, and receiving PYUSD. They also receive a 4% annual yield on their stablecoin balance. For markets like Malawi, this marks the first time a PayPal wallet has enabled full value storage — previously, funds had to be immediately withdrawn to local currency.

13 blockchains via LayerZero

Alongside the geographic expansion, PayPal significantly broadened PYUSD's technical infrastructure. Through integration with the LayerZero protocol, the token is now available on 13 blockchains. Tron, Avalanche, Aptos, Abstract, Ink, Sei, and Stable have been added to the base Ethereum and Solana networks.

The company introduced PYUSD0 — a new permissionless version of the token operating on the additional networks. PYUSD0 is fully interchangeable with the original PYUSD and enables free cross-chain transfers without reliance on centralized bridges. This makes the token one of the most multi-chain stablecoins on the market.

Challenging Tether and Circle

With a $4.1 billion market cap, PYUSD remains significantly smaller than market leaders: USDT from Tether exceeds $140 billion, while Circle's USDC tops $30 billion. However, PayPal holds an advantage its crypto-native competitors lack: a network of over 400 million active accounts worldwide.

Corporate clients are already integrating PYUSD into their workflows. YouTube uses PayPal's infrastructure for content creator payouts in stablecoins. The company is also testing a custom stablecoin issuance platform in partnership with MoonPay, which could attract additional businesses to the ecosystem.

Prospects for developing countries

The primary target audience for the expansion is regions where international transfer costs remain disproportionately high. According to the World Bank, the average fee for sending $200 to sub-Saharan Africa exceeds 8%, while a stablecoin transaction costs just a few cents.

PayPal is betting that a dollar-pegged stablecoin with 4% yield will become an attractive alternative to high-inflation local currencies. In Uganda, for instance, inflation exceeds 5%, while in Peru it stands at 3%. Holding funds in PYUSD effectively offers real protection against currency depreciation.

What it means for the market

PayPal's expansion reinforces the trend toward institutionalization of the stablecoin market. Where crypto-native projects once dominated, global fintech giants are now actively shaping the rules. Combined with the recent launch of euro-stablecoins by EU banks, this signals growing convergence between traditional finance and blockchain technology.

For users accustomed to holding stablecoins or planning to convert USDT to hryvnia, the emergence of a new serious competitor means potentially lower fees and greater choice. The competition between USDT, USDC, and PYUSD in 2026 is becoming one of the defining narratives of the crypto market.