90% of Crypto Salaries in 2024 Were Paid in Stablecoins—Here’s Why It Matters

Stablecoins aren’t just for trading anymore—they’re eating payroll. A Pantera survey reveals they dominated crypto salary payments last year, leaving volatile assets in the dust.

Why the shift? Workers want stability, not a paycheck that moons—or crashes—before rent’s due. Meanwhile, employers avoid the accounting nightmare of tracking 20% daily swings.

Finance traditionalists scoff, but let’s be real: they still think Venmo is ‘cutting-edge.’ The future of wages is here—and it’s pegged to the dollar (for now).

Admittedly, this is data from 2024 (meaning it happened well before lawmakers were finalizing the stablecoin legislation in the US), but I’m slightly surprised that USDC outranks USDT by a decent margin. 

Especially since the respondents were largely international, as you can see in the chart below.

But there’s a reason for that, Pantera found. 

“We initially thought this was due to our survey skewing more western. After digging in further, we found it very interesting that none of the major payroll providers in the space (Deel, Remote, Rippling) offer USDT for payroll,” the survey said. 

The team at Pantera told me that the data was collected from a variety of projects around crypto. 

“Our survey includes data pulled from dozens of geographically-distributed startups and information we gathered from hundreds of participants in the crypto community spanning a wide range of professions,” they noted. 

And this came from around 1,600 folks in different sectors, including DeFi, CeFi, gaming, etc. Of that total sum, 47% of respondents were in senior positions, while 29% were in the middle of their careers. The smallest number of respondents, 24%, were junior employees. 

“There’s still no reliable, comprehensive database for compensation in the blockchain ecosystem — so we set out to change that,” Nick Zurick, head of portfolio talent at Pantera, told me. “This survey is a first step toward bringing transparency to crypto compensation. Whether you’re a founder, candidate, or operator, we hope the data is valuable as you build and grow in the space.“

I point this data out because it shows the larger trend towards stablecoins. And now, as we head into the final months of 2025, I’ll be curious to see if we see an even higher tick up. But, alas, only time will tell. 

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