Designing through ambiguity: encouraging international stablecoin adoption
Problem
International users offered strong revenue potential but faced high trading fees, which limited global stablecoin adoption.
Solution
I zoomed out to audit user journeys, then zoomed in from a hypothesis to run a growth experiment with PM.
Impact
Reached 1.2M users and drove a projected 4–5% increase in international USDC assets.
Product Designer
8 Weeks (2024)
PM, ENG, Legal, Marketing, Content
Figma, UserTesting.com
Why global stablecoin adoption matters
International users generate significantly more trading revenue than those in the US, but stablecoin adoption (like USDC and EURC) remains low globally. To capitalize on this growth opportunity, we started the project with a high-level, ambiguous goal:
💡 Encourage more users to adopt more stablecoins.
Zooming Out
Identifying the Real Barriers
To navigate the ambiguity, my first step was to zoom out and list multiple hypotheses about what might be stopping global users from adopting stablecoins.
Was it lack of awareness? Low trust? High conversion fees? Something else entirely?
Zooming In
Solution
Influencing Decisions Through the Adoption Funnel
I conducted user journey audit and designed clear and consistent messaging across four key stages of the adoption funnel (Awareness → Consideration → Decision → Confirmation) to directly influence user decision-making:
Home & Asset Details Page
In collaboration with Legal & Content teams, I added a contextual banner to highlight reduced spread upfront, immediately engaging users with clear savings messaging.
Full page upsell
To provide a full picture of stablecoin's value, I created a full-page modal providing detailed explanations of benefits and fee reductions.
Trade Preview
I added a prominent banner to surface the exact savings at the last step before trade to boost user confidence.
Final Savings Message
To reinforce the savings benefit, I added a line of text to show user the amount saved, leaving users confident in their choice.
Happy path for the experiment
I collaborated closely with Product, Legal, and Engineering teams to implement these targeted improvements smoothly despite constraints.
😿 I'm unable to share the detailed process and final outcomes of this project.
Please send me an email if interested in learning more about my work.
Learnings & Takeaways
Zoom out before zooming in to navigate ambiguity.
We often face broad, unclear challenges. By first zooming out, I was able to grasp the full picture, identify critical barriers like high FX spreads, and then zoom in with confidence to solve a precise, testable issue. This method allowed me to uncover real user pain points and deliver targeted solutions effectively.
Drive clarity through cross-functional collaboration.
Different teams view the same problem through varied lenses. As a designer, my role was to advocate clearly for users while balancing constraints from legal, content, and product perspectives. By facilitating open communication across these teams, I was able to align everyone around meaningful solutions that benefited both users and business goals.
Audit details to create comprehensive impact.
User experiences are shaped by small yet critical details. Auditing each touchpoint carefully allowed me to build cohesive, end-to-end solutions that not only improved immediate conversion rates but also informed a scalable, long-term stablecoin adoption strategy. This attention to detail ensures designs resonate deeply with user needs and foster lasting trust.