In a significant expansion of its stablecoin settlement initiative, Visa has incorporated five additional blockchains into its network, marking a substantial enhancement of its multichain approach to global payments. The company's stablecoin settlement pilot, which now spans nine networks, has achieved a notable $7 billion annualized run rate, representing a 50% increase from the previous quarter.
This development enables issuers and acquirers to utilize stablecoins for transaction settlements, bypassing traditional banking channels. The newly integrated blockchains - including Coinbase's Base, Polygon, Canton Network, Circle's Arc, and Stripe-backed Tempo - join the existing roster of supported networks, which includes Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche, and Stellar. As stablecoins gain traction as a viable means of cross-border money movement, Visa's strategic move underscores its commitment to exploring innovative payment models.
By facilitating near real-time transactions through blockchain-based currencies, Visa's partners can circumvent the delays inherent in traditional banking systems. The company's decision to support multiple networks is designed to provide partners with access to diverse liquidity pools without added complexity. According to Rubail Birwadker, Visa's global head of growth products and strategic partnerships, 'Our partners operate in a multichain environment and expect their options to reflect this reality.
By expanding our stablecoin settlement pilot program to include more blockchains, our partners can select the networks that best suit their needs while relying on Visa to provide a unified settlement layer across all of them.'