Money101
Stablecoin
A stablecoin targets a steady price, usually one U.S. dollar. Public Law 119-27 requires permitted U.S. issuers to hold at least 1:1 reserves.
How Payment for Order Flow (PFOF) Works
An explanation of Payment for Order Flow (PFOF), the business model behind 'free' brokerage trading, and its impact on trade execution quality.
How Stablecoin Reserves Are Held and Segregated
Custody and segregation decide which assets back a fiat stablecoin and which creditors can reach them. USDC reserves were $73.40 billion on August 31, 2026.
How Account Abstraction Works: UserOperation and EntryPoint
ERC-4337 sends a UserOperation to its own mempool. A bundler calls EntryPoint.handleOps. Pectra activated EIP-7702 on May 7, 2025.
Payment for Order Flow: Routing Pay Under Rule 606
A broker can be paid to route a customer's stock order. Rule 606 requires a quarterly report of that pay. Schwab's Q2 2026 cap was $0.001 a share.
How Stablecoin Issuance Works: Mint, Reserve, Redeem
Issuers mint stablecoins when reserves arrive and burn them on redemption. On August 31, 2026, USDC reserves were $73.40 billion against 73.32 billion tokens.
How Do Commission-Free Brokers Make Money?
A $0 commission can still pay the broker through routing, cash spreads, margin, and share lending. A Q2 2026 report lists payments of $0.0008 a share or less.