Visa Stablecoin Settlement Pilot Hits $7 Billion Run Rate, Adds Five Blockchains

Visa said Wednesday that its stablecoin settlement pilot now supports nine blockchain networks and has reached a $7 billion annualized run rate, up 50% from the prior quarter. The payments company added support for Coinbase's Base, Polygon, Canton Network, Circle's Arc and Stripe-backed Tempo, joining existing integrations with Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche and Stellar. The program lets issuers and acquirers settle transactions using stablecoins rather than traditional banking rails. Stablecoins, cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat currencies, are gaining traction for cross-border money movement. Visa has been testing the model through pilots and regional rollouts, including USDC settlement tied to card programs in more than 50 countries. Partners can now settle transactions using blockchain-based dollars in near real time, Visa said. Rubail Birwadker, Visa's global head of growth products and strategic partnerships, said the expansion reflects a multi-chain reality. "Our partners are building in a multi-chain world, and they expect their options to reflect that reality," Birwadker said. "Expanding our stablecoin settlement pilot program to more blockchains means our partners can choose the networks that best fit their needs, while relying on Visa to provide a common settlement layer across all of them."