Zebec Network wants to change the way the world pays. The company says its blockchain-based payroll system can stream paychecks in real-time, allowing employees to receive paychecks every second instead of waiting for biweekly paydays. On paper, it sounds revolutionary. The question remains, who is actually using it?
A bold attempt to repair an old system
Zebec’s idea is simple. Automate wage payments so they’re paid on an ongoing basis rather than in delayed installments. Originally built on the Solana blockchain, the system uses stablecoins such as USDC to leverage the speed of blockchain while eliminating volatility.
For workers, the appeal is clear. Freelancers, remote employees, and contractors can now access their earnings instantly instead of relying on slow and expensive fee transfers. Zebec promises businesses to automate compliance, speed up payroll processing, and reduce cross-border payment costs. In theory, Zebec isn’t trying to reinvent finance, but modernizing something that hasn’t changed for decades: salary dynamics.
Zebec Network’s promising numbers, but little evidence
Zebec Network has been sharing optimistic metrics over the past year. The company’s official website says it has an annual payroll of approximately $500 million and serves more than 250 corporate clients.
These numbers seem impressive until you look closer. Zebec does not release audit reports or name the large companies that use its real-time payroll system on a large scale. Most of the reported customers were acquired through acquisitions of smaller, traditional payroll companies such as PayBridge and School Payroll Services, but there is little data on how many of those customers actually made the switch to blockchain-based payments.
The broader context makes the gap even clearer. The U.S. payroll market alone exceeds $11 trillion annually. By comparison, Zebec’s self-reported value, while remarkable for a start-up, is only a fraction.
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Challenge: Technology isn’t the hard part
Zebec Network’s technology works. You can stream payments in seconds, manage stablecoin payments, and integrate with wallets. More difficult is adapting the system to a real-world payroll framework, where employers must comply with tax, labor, and banking regulations across multiple countries.
In that sense, Zebec’s competitors are choosing a simpler path. Sablier, which introduced token streaming on Ethereum in 2019, uses the same pay-per-second principle, but is primarily used for cryptocurrency subsidies, token vesting, and DAO payroll. They didn’t have to face the complex regulations that come with payroll for large companies.
Another streaming payments protocol, Superfluid, focuses on decentralized finance and subscription flows across multiple chains. Its model is flexible and widely adopted in the cryptocurrency industry, but it has not penetrated payroll, which is also regulated.
In contrast, Zebec Network seeks to integrate traditional payroll compliance with blockchain streaming. This is an ambitious goal that is much more difficult to implement.
Additionally, the company’s native token, ZBCN, is designed to facilitate transactions and governance on the network. In theory, as payroll usage increases, the demand for tokens should also increase. But that connection has not yet been realized in a verifiable way.
ZBCN rallies have so far coincided with announcements of token migrations, acquisitions, partnerships, etc. rather than an obvious spike in payroll implementation. For the token to maintain its value, its utility needs to extend beyond the hype and into everyday transactions within the Zebec ecosystem.
Missing Evidence of Zebec Network Deployment
For Zebec to deliver on its promise, adoption will have to go beyond startups and Web3 companies. Real disruption means traditional employers (manufacturers, tech giants, service companies) processing payroll through the platform.
So far, no such evidence has been made public. Zebec Network’s website mentions “more than 250 enterprise customers,” but does not specify which of those companies are using real-time stablecoin payroll. Monthly transaction data from mid-2025 onwards is also not published.
This lack of transparency is not uncommon in young companies, but it is a major roadblock to credibility. In a field known for hype cycles, the only real proof that blockchain can change the way people pay is measurable adoption.
To its credit, Zebec is ahead of many blockchain projects in tackling real-world financial processes. We built infrastructure, secured regulatory partnerships, and acquired traditional payroll companies to bridge both worlds.
Compared to peers such as Sablier and Superfluid, Zebec’s focus on regulated payroll rather than generic “streaming payments” gives it a potential advantage. The company is targeting a much tougher market, but one that could potentially be highly profitable if it does well.
Still, the way forward lies in execution. Integrating blockchain into payroll means adhering to compliance, maintaining stablecoin liquidity, and convincing conservative finance departments that ongoing payroll is worth the switch. This is a tall order for any company, crypto-based or not.