# The real story of stablecoins with Bridge’s founder & USDC’s creator

> with @zcabrams @psneville @rhackett In this episode, Robert Hackett sits down with Sean Neville, cofounder of Circle and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin, and Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge (now part of Stripe), for a deep dive into the real story behind stablecoins, finding product-market fit, and...

- URL: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/stablecoins-bridge-founder-circle-usdc-creator
- Authors: [Sean Neville](https://a16zcrypto.com/team/sean-neville), [Zach Abrams](https://a16zcrypto.com/team/zach-abrams), [Robert Hackett](https://a16zcrypto.com/team/robert-hackett)
- Published: 2025-12-10
- Focus areas: company building, tech trends
- Tags: stablecoins, founder stories, podcast, Founders Summits
- Format: podcast

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[Embedded media](https://player.simplecast.com/47742fde-cd26-41b6-8ab0-d3632f53e7ef?dark=true)

[Embedded media](https://www.youtube.com/embed/2y4i6yqcorI?feature=oembed)

**with [@zcabrams](https://x.com/zcabrams) [@psneville](https://x.com/psneville) [@rhackett](https://x.com/rhackett)**

In this episode, Robert Hackett sits down with Sean Neville, cofounder of Circle and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin, and Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge (now part of Stripe), for a deep dive into the real story behind stablecoins, finding product-market fit, and the future of payments infrastructure.

They explore the earliest days of USDC — when stablecoins were far from obvious and regulatory frameworks didn’t exist. Sean shares how his conviction in “money running at internet speed” helped shape a multibillion-dollar asset. Zach recounts Bridge’s pivot from NFTs to stablecoin infrastructure — and how his business has changed since joining Stripe.

Together, they break down:

-   Why stablecoins are having their moment now
-   What counts as product-market fit (and why founders rarely “feel” it)
-   The challenges of building crypto and AI products within heavily regulated environments
-   Why new base-layer chains like Arc, Tempo, and others may be needed
-   How decentralization, liquidity moats, and interoperability will define the next decade of blockchain adoption
-   What the future of programmable money and AI-driven financial workflows looks like

Whether you’re a founder, a crypto-curious builder, or someone trying to understand where global payments are headed, this conversation — originally recorded live at our recent a16z crypto Founders Summit — offers insights from two operators at the center of an industry-defining transformation.

**Guests:**  
• **Sean Neville** — Cofounder, Circle; CEO and cofounder, Catena  
• **Zach Abrams** — Founder and CEO, Bridge (acquired by Stripe)

**Highlights:**

01:26 — Origins of USDC

02:44 — Why stablecoins are having their moment now

04:14 — Circle’s early product experiments

06:19— Surviving crypto cycles

07:35 — Bridge: From NFT payments to stablecoins

08:58 — What product-market fit actually feels like

20:02 — Inevitability and the founder vs. employer mindset

20:58 — Why Bridge joined Stripe

26:18 — How AI changes company building

29:38 — What students should study now

30:27 — Why new payment chains (Tempo & Arc)?

35:55 — Decentralization as imperative

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Source: [The real story of stablecoins with Bridge’s founder & USDC’s creator](https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/stablecoins-bridge-founder-circle-usdc-creator) — a16z crypto. Full archive: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts