SINGAPORE – Global payments giant Visa (NYSE: V) is set to usher in a new era for
international transactions, leveraging stablecoin technology to enhance its vast network. The
company announced on September 30 at the SIBOS 2025 conference that its Visa Direct platform is launching a groundbreaking pilot
program. This initiative will enable businesses to pre-fund accounts with stablecoins instead of traditional fiat currency, promising
instant liquidity, reduced costs, and unparalleled cross-border efficiency.
Key Takeaways:
·
Visa Direct's new pilot program is paving the way for instant global payments by integrating stablecoin rails into its established network.
·
This
strategic move aims to revolutionize cross-border transactions for institutions, offering enhanced liquidity,
cost reduction, and superior efficiency.
Visa
Direct's New Pilot Program Prepares Ground for Instant Global Payments with Stablecoin Rails
The global financial
infrastructure is increasingly looking towards blockchain-based solutions as traditional systems grapple with the demands
for real-time international payments. Recognizing this shift, Visa unveiled a significant pivot at the SIBOS 2025
conference: its Visa Direct platform will pilot a program allowing companies
to pre-fund accounts using stablecoins. This initiative is poised to dramatically
accelerate liquidity, drive down operational costs, and streamline cross-border payments for financial institutions and businesses
worldwide.
Chris Newkirk,
President of Commercial and Money Movement Solutions at Visa, articulated the vision behind this bold move:
"Cross-border payments have been stuck in outdated systems for far too
long. Visa Direct's new stablecoin integration lays the groundwork for money to move
instantly across the globe, offering businesses more choice in how they pay."
— Chris Newkirk, President of Commercial and Money
Movement Solutions at Visa
Visa emphasized that this broader vision seamlessly
merges the programmability inherent in blockchain technology with the expansive scale of its established
network. By "combining the scale and trust of Visa's global network with
the programmability of blockchain and partnering with leading payment providers on
pre-funding use cases, Visa is helping to modernize cross-border payments for businesses, financial institutions, and
consumers globally."
The pilot program
will initially be exclusive to select banks, money transfer businesses, and
financial institutions, with a broader expansion anticipated in 2026.
Participating companies will pre-fund their Visa Direct accounts with stablecoins. Visa will then treat these digital assets as cash-equivalent balances, effectively
eliminating the need for businesses to maintain substantial fiat reserves while
still ensuring comprehensive payment coverage.
The company
highlighted several key benefits, including faster access to liquidity, increased treasury responsiveness, and
predictable settlement, which is inherently insulated from currency volatility. While a segment of the financial world remains
cautious regarding stablecoins, proponents argue they deliver unmatched
efficiency and scalability, thereby positioning blockchain-based funding mechanisms as a natural evolution within the global digital economy.
Visa has been proactively cultivating partnerships
with leading crypto companies such as Circle to deeply integrate stablecoins into its core payment infrastructure. The primary
objective is to fundamentally modernize the movement and settlement of cross-border money. This involves utilizing stablecoins like USDC and EURC to facilitate transactions that are both faster
and more cost-effective than conventional wire transfers. Far from viewing stablecoins as a threat, Visa sees them as a strategic opportunity to fortify
its own network. This includes key applications such as stablecoin-linked cards, which empower users to spend their digital asset balances at millions of merchant locations globally. A
notable precedent occurred in March 2020, when Visa announced it had become the first major payment
network to leverage USDC for settling a transaction on the Ethereum blockchain during a pilot program with Crypto.com.
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