Visa is bolstering its stablecoin initiative by integrating five new blockchains into its ecosystem, underscoring its commitment to a multichain strategy for global payments. The company announced on Wednesday that its stablecoin settlement pilot program now encompasses nine networks, achieving an annualized run rate of $7 billion, representing a 50% increase from the previous quarter. This program enables issuers and acquirers to settle transactions using stablecoins, bypassing traditional banking channels.
The newly added blockchains include Coinbase's Base, Polygon, Canton Network, Circle's Arc, and Stripe-backed Tempo, in addition to existing integrations with Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche, and Stellar. As stablecoins, cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of fiat currencies, continue to gain traction as a means of cross-border money transfer, Visa is expanding its testing of this model through pilots and regional rollouts, such as USDC settlement tied to card programs in over 50 countries.
By leveraging blockchain-based dollars, partners can settle transactions in near real-time, eliminating the need for lengthy waiting periods associated with traditional banking systems. Visa's support for multiple networks aims 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 are developing in a multi-chain environment, and they expect their options to reflect this reality. By expanding our stablecoin settlement pilot program to 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.'