Visa has announced a collaboration with WeFi, a blockchain-based stablecoin infrastructure company, to facilitate the creation of on-chain banking services. WeFi, co-founded by Reeve Collins, a former Tether executive, provides an interoperability layer between decentralized finance and traditional payment systems, enabling use cases such as cross-border transactions and on-chain asset storage.
According to Collins, the platform will offer users virtual bank accounts, complete with IBAN numbers, and will obtain necessary licenses to operate globally. As the platform expands, WeFi plans to partner with additional banks and institutions to serve underbanked populations. The rollout will occur regionally, beginning with select markets in Europe, Asia, and Latin America, with further expansion dependent on local regulatory approvals and partnerships.
Collins noted that the partnership with Visa completes the on-chain banking infrastructure, while Mathieu Altwegg, Visa's Head of Product & Solutions in Europe, highlighted the collaboration as a demonstration of Visa's global network interacting with on-chain models within established regulatory frameworks.