Stripe and crypto venture firm Paradigm announced Thursday the launch of Tempo, a layer‑1 blockchain designed specifically for stablecoins and payments.
Payments‑focused infrastructure
Tempo is Ethereum Virtual Machine‑compatible, and its developers describe it as infrastructure for “high‑throughput, low‑cost global transactions.” The project is being built in collaboration with companies including OpenAI, Visa, and Shopify, according to Tempo’s announcement on its official site.
Introducing @tempo
— Matt Huang (@matthuang) September 4, 2025
A payments-first blockchain incubated by Stripe and Paradigm
Matt Huang, Paradigm co‑founder and project lead, noted that much of the existing crypto stack is optimized for trading rather than payments.
“As stablecoins go mainstream, there’s a growing need for optimized infrastructure,” he said.
Tempo aims to process more than 100,000 transactions per second and incorporate privacy features that permit selective transaction data confidentiality. An integrated automated market maker (AMM) will also allow transaction fees to be paid in any stablecoin.
Testing and validation
The network is currently running in a private testnet, with proof‑of‑concept cases in e‑commerce and cross‑border payments, according to Tempo’s public update. Several design partners are also serving as validators, with plans for Tempo to transition into a permissionless model so that anyone can participate in network validation in the future.
Thrilled to team up with @Tempo as a design partner to see what’s possible with a payments-first blockchain. The pace of crypto innovation is incredible at this time, and we’re ready to learn and build alongside them. https://t.co/1LmfXeDZxI
— Andy Fang (@andyfang) September 4, 2025
Industry positioning and analysis
Stripe CEO Patrick Collison commented on the company’s rationale:
“As stablecoin use grows across Stripe, Bridge, and Privy, we found that existing blockchains are not optimized for payments.”
With Stripe’s backing, Tempo effectively positions itself as a challenger to other tech and fintech‑aligned blockchain payment initiatives from Google and Circle. Analysts have noted that Stripe’s acquisitions of Bridge (a $1.1 billion deal in 2023) and Privy in June reflect a broader strategy of integrating stablecoin and crypto infrastructure into mainstream financial services.
By emphasizing payments, scale, and cross‑industry partnerships, Tempo seeks to enter a space where other layer‑1 solutions often prioritize trading or speculative use cases. This strategic focus could differentiate it in a crowded blockchain ecosystem where regulatory alignment and integration with global businesses are increasingly decisive factors.
Tempo’s debut was accompanied by another announcement in the space: crypto infrastructure company Fireblocks launched its Fireblocks Network, supported by Circle (the issuer of USDC) and over 40 additional providers.
Tanya Petrusenko
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