From 30 March to 2 April 2026, Cannes hosted EthCC[9] — the ninth edition of one of the most prominent events in the blockchain and Ethereum ecosystem. Over 400 speakers and thousands of community members, including researchers, policymakers, and innovators, came together to discuss the perspectives and challenges of crypto expansion.

Our team — Head of PR Alina Sysoeva and Senior Account Manager Maria Tunikova — attended the event and followed key panels and presentations. This year’s EthCC was especially important for Drofa Comms, as our project, Women Leading the Way, became the event’s official community partner. We are proud to continue highlighting women’s leadership in fintech within such an innovative environment.

​Below, we share several prominent topics that defined the conversation this year and what they mean for the future of digital payments.

The Opportunity for Non-USD Stablecoins

One of the key themes at EthCC was the discussion of stablecoins, which shifted away from focusing only on USD-denominated stablecoins. Today, more than 99% of stablecoin activity is centred around the US dollar, and, as one of the panellists noted, this creates structural barriers to real adoption. If businesses operate and manage liabilities in euros, relying on dollar-denominated rails creates new risks.

The discussion revealed that liquidity will always be a serious constraint for the non-USD stablecoins. It is natural that institutions cannot rely on these assets without a sufficient asset base, but liquidity itself depends on adoption. This creates a classic market loop that is really hard to resolve.

As a result, speakers agreed that non-USD stablecoins can’t compete directly with those denominated in the dollar, but they may be widely used for additional purposes, such as serving as treasury assets or local transaction tools.

What Will Define the Efficiency of Crypto Payments

Another major topic of the event was the future of crypto payments. Across panels, speakers stated that the existing system is still too slow and fragmented.

​Stablecoins are increasingly seen as a settlement technology for instant payments with no breaks or pauses. It may be especially useful for cross-border payments, as traditional systems still incur high fees and latency. In this environment, stablecoins with near-instant settlement and full traceability offer significant benefits to users.

In TradFi, customers rarely understand what happens to their money and how their yield is generated. Stablecoins and broader crypto infrastructure, in their turn, make it more directly accessible to users. Along with lower fees and greater ease of use, they may weaken the influence of intermediaries, shifting value closer to end clients.

However, this efficiency comes with a serious trade-off, as regulation and policy still limit the use and interaction of stablecoins with traditional financial systems. As one of the panellists noted, the development of stablecoins may trigger regulatory pushback, as demand for alternative financial rails grows due to banking restrictions.

Between Transparency and Privacy in the Ethereum Ecosystem

While adoption and liquidity are important bottlenecks, there are other topics which may constrain stablecoins adoption. That’s why some speakers at EthCC[9] chose to focus more on privacy and security as they challenge further system development.

During discussions, it was mentioned that Ethereum privacy is based on three layers. 

• The first one — privacy for reads — determines who can see the transaction flow and deals in the chain. 

• The second — privacy for writes — regulates who can see written changes when a transaction is executed. 

• Finally, the third layer depends on the widespread use of zero-knowledge proofs across the ecosystem, allowing transactions to be verified without exposing sensitive information.

Yet, according to the speakers, most efforts in the field so far have focused only on privacy for writes, while the privacy for reads and off-chain transaction metadata was largely ignored.

Another important takeaway is that blockchain transparency, once considered a feature, may become a barrier to further expansion. Crypto-users generally agree on public transactions and transparency of every action, but large corporations and institutions cannot operate in this environment. 

Sensitive information on transaction flows or counterparties should stay confidential to avoid risks and attacks, which is why zero-knowledge proofs and privacy-preserving layers may become truly essential for broader blockchain adoption.

Why Communications Matter in Web3 Like Never Before

Beyond technology, EthCC[9] also highlighted a less obvious theme. Speakers talked at length about communication and its meaning for the infrastructure. It was stated that every Web3 public crisis starts internally. Bad launches or reputational disasters are usually just downstream of broken internal communication processes.

Many projects today deal in complex technology while operating in a constantly-evolving regulatory environment. It creates tensions and may make understanding the products even more difficult. According to one of the panellists, adoption now depends more and more on integrating stablecoins into fintech products and global platforms rather than on their design and technical features.

That’s why communication itself is becoming a part of the infrastructure. Liquidity will only grow if users can access a product easily and understand where and why to use it. This may be achieved through clear and transparent communication with the public. 

In that sense, Web3 communication should shift from marketing to strategic positioning. It is important to clarify use cases for non-crypto audiences and translate technical details into economic value. Without this, it is much more challenging to build long-term trust.

What’s Next?

EthCC 2026 showed that the industry is entering the stage where infrastructure and regulation are critical to further development. The bottleneck now lies in the coordination between the product and its users.

Companies have already shown that they can create innovative tools and products, but now they face a new challenge — integrating these solutions into existing financial systems. And, as we see it, it is a clear sign of a maturing industry.