You get a quote. You wire the money. Two to five business days later, the payment lands — at whatever rate the market decided in the meantime. Nobody told you the number would move. It just does, because a quote that isn't locked is just a guess with a timestamp on it.
Quote-then-execute means the rate you saw is the rate you get. The quote and the settlement happen close enough together that the gap stops being a place risk can hide.
Why the Old Model Tolerates the Gap
Correspondent banking was never built to close that gap — it was built around batch cycles, cutoffs, and multi-day settlement, so a 2-5 business day window between quote and execution was just assumed. A 1.5-3% (a Modality estimate) spread on top of that window means you're absorbing rate risk and paying a markup for the privilege.
Locking the Rate Where Settlement Is Same-Day
Modality quotes one spread on a direct pair and settles same-day instead of over a multi-day window, because the underlying value moves as RLUSD, USDC, or USDT on rails that run 24/7 — no waiting for a banking-hours cutoff to catch up with the quote you already accepted. The shorter the distance between quote and execution, the less room for the market to move against you. Modality provides the quoting, routing, and settlement software; licensed partners hold the funds throughout, so the rate lock never depends on Modality holding your money.
Talk to Modality. See your real rate before you commit.
FAQ: Quote Then Execute FX Stablecoin
How does quote-then-execute FX work in stablecoin settlement?
The rate is quoted and held before you commit to the payment, so there's no surprise fill at execution -- unlike FX conversions where the rate can move between quote and settlement.
What backs the stablecoins used in B2B settlement?
Modality's rails use RLUSD, USDC, and USDT -- each backed per its own issuer's reserve model -- moved across BTC, ETH, SOL, and XRP chains plus SEPA, SWIFT, Faster Payments and local rails reaching 63 countries.
How does a stablecoin's peg work?
A stablecoin is designed to hold stable value against a reference asset, typically a fiat currency. Modality settles using RLUSD, USDC and USDT across BTC, ETH, SOL and XRP chains rather than issuing its own.
Note: the 1.5–3% cost and 2–5 business day figures are Modality estimates for a typical correspondent-bank route, not a published benchmark. Actual cost and timing vary by corridor, currency pair, bank and amount.