IJSEA Volume 14 Issue 9

Leveraging Decentralized Blockchain Payment Infrastructures to Lower Transaction Fees, Accelerate Settlements, and Foster Inclusive Economic Participation in the USA

Rachael Akalia
10.7753/IJSEA1409.1011
keywords : Decentralized finance, blockchain payments, transaction fees, settlement systems, financial inclusion, United States

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Decentralized blockchain payment infrastructures are rapidly emerging as transformative tools for reshaping financial transactions in the United States. Traditional payment systems remain heavily reliant on intermediaries such as banks, card networks, and clearinghouses, which impose significant transaction fees and introduce settlement delays. These inefficiencies disproportionately affect small businesses, underbanked populations, and cross-border remittances, where costs and time lags create barriers to broader participation in the financial ecosystem. Blockchain-based payment systems, by contrast, utilize distributed ledgers and smart contracts to enable peer-to-peer transactions with reduced reliance on intermediaries. This structural shift holds the potential to substantially lower transaction fees, streamline settlement processes to near-real-time, and enhance transparency through immutable record-keeping. From a broader economic perspective, decentralized payment solutions align with the growing demand for financial inclusion and democratized access to capital flows. They allow micro-entrepreneurs, gig workers, and rural communities to participate more effectively in economic activities by reducing entry costs and providing verifiable transaction histories. In the U.S. context, the integration of blockchain into mainstream finance could complement existing systems such as ACH, FedNow, and card-based networks, while offering alternatives that better serve marginalized groups. Narrowing the focus, evidence suggests that fintech innovators piloting blockchain platforms have already demonstrated measurable reductions in processing costs and settlement times for retail and institutional payments alike. Nonetheless, challenges persist in terms of regulatory clarity, interoperability with legacy infrastructures, and concerns over scalability and energy use. Addressing these issues through targeted policy reforms and public-private partnerships will be critical to ensuring that decentralized blockchain payment infrastructures can deliver on their promise of inclusive, efficient, and secure economic participation.
@artical{r1492025ijsea14091011,
Title = "Leveraging Decentralized Blockchain Payment Infrastructures to Lower Transaction Fees, Accelerate Settlements, and Foster Inclusive Economic Participation in the USA ",
Journal ="International Journal of Science and Engineering Applications (IJSEA)",
Volume = "14",
Issue ="9",
Pages ="88 - 99",
Year = "2025",
Authors ="Rachael Akalia"}