Silicon Valley’s latest crypto soap opera has a familiar face: Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is back with yet another cryptocurrency tease. But hold on — this time might actually be different.
Speaking at Bloomberg’s Tech conference in San Francisco, Khosrowshahi didn’t just rehash the usual crypto platitudes. Instead, he zeroed in on stablecoins as a practical solution for Uber’s global payment headaches. “Stablecoins are one of the more interesting instantiations of crypto that have a practical benefit beyond being a store of value,” he noted, probably hoping this particular crypto overture won’t age like milk.
Let’s face it — we’ve been down this road before. Remember September 2021? Bitcoin was riding high, crypto bros were insufferable, and Khosrowshahi told CNBC they’d “look into” accepting Bitcoin. (While keeping their actual cash “safe,” naturally.) Then came February 2022’s encore performance, with promises of “absolutely” accepting crypto “at some point” — mere weeks before the market decided to recreate the Hindenburg disaster.
The timing of these announcements has been almost comically perfect — if you’re into dark comedy. Each declaration seemed carefully calculated to catch the last gasp of crypto enthusiasm, only to be vindicated by subsequent market meltdowns that made Uber’s foot-dragging look downright prophetic.
But here’s where things get interesting. This latest pivot to stablecoins — particularly USDC and USDT — feels less like crypto FOMO and more like actual strategy. “You can have your opinions on Bitcoin,” Khosrowshahi explained, “but stablecoins seems quite promising, especially for global companies moving money around internationally.” Well, no kidding — moving money across borders in 2024 still feels like using a fax machine in the age of smartphones.
Uber’s not exactly a crypto rookie, mind you. They were early members of Meta’s ill-fated Diem Association (remember Libra? No? Lucky you.) back in 2019. That particular adventure in digital currency ended about as well as a chocolate teapot, but it showed Uber’s genuine interest in revolutionizing payments — even if their execution has been mostly theoretical.
The company’s current “study phase” of stablecoin evaluation comes during a period of relative crypto stability. For a global operation constantly shuffling money between countries, stablecoins’ efficiency promise is tantalizing — assuming they can deliver without Bitcoin’s notorious mood swings.
Yet there’s something familiar about this latest dance. Like a tech-world groundhog day, each of Uber’s crypto declarations has been followed by careful inaction. Maybe by 2025, we’ll be writing about Uber’s fourth “serious consideration” of crypto adoption. Or perhaps — just perhaps — this time they’ll actually follow through.
For now, Uber drivers shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for USDC payments. But in a world where traditional cross-border transactions remain stubbornly stuck in the past, maybe — just maybe — the third time’s the charm for Uber’s crypto aspirations. Though don’t be shocked if we’re all back here next year, dissecting yet another carefully worded “consideration” of crypto adoption.
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