Solana Foundation president Lily Liu made a case for blockchain payments as the backbone of an emerging “AI machine economy” during her speech at Consensus Miami 2026 on Tuesday.
Liu pointed to recent stablecoin integrations by Meta and Western Union on the Solana network as proof that large corporations are moving beyond speculation. She argued these moves validate blockchain as practical financial infrastructure, not just a playground for traders.
“It’s not new,” Liu said, recalling that Visa chose Solana for stablecoin settlements back in 2023 after what she called an “extensive objective review” of various blockchain networks. She framed these decisions as natural steps in an ongoing evolution.
Why Big Companies Are Moving to Crypto Rails
Liu emphasized that speed and low cost make blockchain a no-brainer for payments. But she also stressed that enterprises need more than just a fast network. They require deep liquidity, a strong developer community, and a wide ecosystem of applications around those payment rails.
She highlighted Western Union’s move onto blockchain infrastructure as a particularly significant milestone. “When I first came into this industry in 2014, Western Union was always the white whale crypto,” Liu admitted, suggesting that winning over such a traditional player signals real progress.
The AI Payments Angle
Looking at the intersection of crypto and artificial intelligence, Liu argued that blockchain-based payments are uniquely suited for what she called “agentic commerce”—where AI agents transact autonomously with other machines and services.
Traditional internet payments rely heavily on credit cards, which make micropayments impractical because of interchange fees. Blockchain rails, in contrast, enable sub-dollar transactions and real-time payment streaming.
“The vast majority of transactions that happen on the internet are actually of microtransaction value,” Liu pointed out. “You literally cannot process those individual transactions because you have to put them through credit cards.”
Defending Solana’s Security Approach
Liu also addressed recent security incidents on Solana involving projects like Vault and Drift. She defended the ecosystem’s interventions, saying that preserving industry confidence sometimes outweighs competitive rivalries within decentralized finance.
Her comments suggested that a more hands-on approach might be necessary to maintain trust, even if it ruffles some feathers among hardcore decentralization advocates.
What Comes Next
Liu argued that the industry is still underestimating blockchain’s ultimate role. Rather than functioning primarily as generalized technology platforms, she said blockchains are fundamentally “financial rails first and foremost.”
She predicted that crypto’s longer-term promise could extend beyond payments into what she called “internet capital markets.” This vision would allow companies and sovereign entities worldwide to access global capital formation more directly, potentially bypassing traditional financial intermediaries.
The speech offered a clear message: Solana is positioning itself not just as a platform for crypto enthusiasts, but as the infrastructure for a future where machines pay other machines—and where global finance becomes more accessible.
