Visa expands stablecoin settlement pilots in push to modernise cross-border payments
Visa is looking to expand its stablecoin settlement capabilities with Circle’s USDC stablecoin by adding new pilot programmes with merchant acquirers Worldpay and Nuvei in a push to modernise cross-border payments.
Visa expands stablecoin settlement capabilities to merchant acquirers
The company will utilise the Solana blockchain to help payments firms speed up settlement times for their merchant clients.
The plans will enable its partners to send and receive USDC, the USD-pegged stablecoin developed by Circle, using a high-performance blockchain capable of completing 400 transactions per second on average.
The company has confirmed that it has already “moved millions of USDC” between its partners through the Solana and Ethereum blockchain networks to settle fiat-denominated payments authorised over VisaNet, its electronic payments network.
Cuy Sheffield, Visa’s head of crypto, says in a statement that its adoption of both blockchains will help “improve the speed of cross-border settlement” and provide “a modern option for our clients to easily send or receive funds from Visa’s treasury”.
Visa’s relationship with stablecoins and USDC more specifically began in 2021, when it ran a successful pilot to test stablecoin settlement on the issuance side with the cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com. The test overcame the challenges of lengthy currency conversion processes and expensive international wire transfers incurred in settlements for cross-border purchases.
To retain this momentum, the company plans to run pilots with acquirers Worldpay and Nuvei to test onchain payouts and drive additional benefits for merchants.
Jim Johnson, president of Worldpay Merchant Solutions, FIS, says the partnership will enable the company to bring more of its treasury options in-house and offer its merchant partners more ways to receive funds.
Additionally, Philip Fayer, chair and CEO of Nuvei, says the use of stablecoins will encourage the growth of online businesses, and that Visa’s ongoing attempt to optimise cross-border transactions is just one of many use cases where stablecoins could benefit businesses.
