Spiral warns Bitcoin payments lag stablecoins, calls for adoption ideas within five years

Block-backed Bitcoin development group Spiral has issued a warning that Bitcoin is not achieving expected traction as a daily medium of exchange, despite seven years of enhancements to its payment capabilities. The group calls for ambitious concepts to drive adoption within a five-year timeframe, contending that it is lagging behind increasingly popular stablecoins.

Spiral's report, titled "The Long Road to Bitcoin Payments," notes that approximately one million U.S. merchants can now accept Bitcoin via Square, and the Lightning Network integration into payment applications has become simpler. Despite these infrastructural improvements, consumer spending remains constrained.

This report emerges as providers such as Stripe and Shopify integrate stablecoins into their services, with dollar-backed tokens gaining momentum in automated payments and online commerce. Spiral posits that the industry's primary hurdle is now rooted in consumer incentives and demand, even as payment infrastructure advances.

Jack Dorsey, whose long-standing viewpoint informs the report, maintains that Bitcoin's success hinges on its use as a regularly spent currency. He stated in January 2025, "If bitcoin ends up just being digital gold, I think it's failed," emphasizing that daily currency application should define its success.

While acknowledging Bitcoin's established role as a store of value, the group highlights that payment demand may not materialize organically. Competitors are actively adopting alternative technologies before Bitcoin solidifies its presence, according to some observers.

The competitive landscape is defined by stablecoins, as businesses and consumers can move dollar-denominated value without facing Bitcoin's price volatility. The report cites examples like Shopify's USDC checkout integration and Stripe's acquisition of Bridge.

Beyond market competition, several structural issues impede everyday Bitcoin use. Consumers often acquire Bitcoin through exchanges before spending it, a step avoided by conventional services. Furthermore, price volatility causes consumer hesitation, and merchants prefer immediate dollar conversion.

Regulatory friction adds another layer of difficulty; current federal rules suggest that spending Bitcoin constitutes a property disposal, potentially triggering taxable events. The stalled CLARITY Act is also cited as a source of uncertainty for payment developers.

Spiral is soliciting proposals to materially shift Bitcoin payment adoption within five years. Suggestions include exploring shared Lightning infrastructure for both Bitcoin and dollar payments, and focusing on users in nations with unstable currencies.

Market participants, including developers, are encouraged to experiment with incentives, such as rewards, to spur existing holders into spending. Spiral has initiated a GitHub discussion to gather data on merchant volumes and transaction success rates.

This focus on adoption challenges reflects a broader trend where the utility of decentralized protocols is being tested against established financial rails. The institutional interest in payment infrastructure, as seen with the integration of stablecoins into major platforms, underscores the critical juncture for Bitcoin's evolution beyond a purely speculative asset.

Why it matters

This highlights the ongoing tension between Bitcoin's store-of-value narrative and its viability as everyday money in the evolving DeFi and payment landscape. The competition from stablecoins, which offer dollar-denominated stability, presents a clear challenge to Bitcoin's adoption curve. Readers should watch how infrastructure improvements translate into actual consumer spending versus stablecoin integration.