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Key facts (as of 29 October 2026)
- Visa settlement: Visa launched USDC settlement in the United States on 16 December 2025, letting issuers and acquirers settle VisaNet obligations in USDC, starting on Solana with Cross River Bank and Lead Bank (Visa).
- Growth: Visa's stablecoin settlement volume passed a US$20bn annualised run rate, more than 15 times a year earlier, with more than 160 stablecoin-linked card programmes live in Visa's fiscal second quarter and payment volume on them up nearly 200% (Visa via The Block, 8 September 2026). In April 2026 Visa reported a US$7bn run rate, up 50% on the previous quarter, with its settlement pilot expanded to nine blockchains and more than 130 stablecoin-linked card programmes in over 50 countries (Visa via The Block, 29 April 2026).
- Visa Direct: on 15 October 2026 Visa said stablecoin prefunding for Visa Direct had moved from pilot to production, with Inyo Global as first enabler, letting businesses prefund cross-border payouts with USDC "in near real time" (Visa).
- Mastercard: Mastercard and BVNK launched Global Money Platform on 15 October 2026, combining fiat and stablecoin accounts, conversion, stablecoin-linked cards and local bank payouts through Mastercard Move (Equity Ledger, citing Mastercard; CoinDesk).
Three different things
People say "stablecoin card payments" for three separate flows.
| Flow | Who uses stablecoins | What the cardholder or merchant sees |
|---|---|---|
| Network settlement | Issuer or acquirer settles with Visa in USDC | Nothing changes |
| Stablecoin-linked cards | Cardholder spends from a stablecoin balance; issuer converts | Merchant receives fiat as usual |
| Payout prefunding | Business prefunds Visa Direct or a payout platform in USDC | Recipient gets local currency |
NoteIn all three, the merchant still takes a card payment under normal card rules. Chargebacks, MCCs, VAMP and integrity programmes still apply. See Chargebacks and VAMP.
How network settlement works
sequenceDiagram
participant I as Issuer
participant V as Visa
participant A as Acquirer
Note over I,A: Card transactions clear as usual
V->>I: Daily settlement position
I->>V: Pays net obligation in USDC on chain, including weekends
V->>A: Pays acquirer (fiat or USDC, per its setup)Visa pitches this on seven-day settlement and liquidity. It says settling every day can support lower collateral for parties that settle daily.
Why issuers care: working capital
Visa says stablecoin card programmes must fund daily settlement before collecting from cardholders. Some early-stage programmes need only a few million dollars and settle daily, which makes traditional warehouse facilities less economic. Credit Coop built a stablecoin revolving credit facility secured by settlement receivables; Visa said borrowing costs for participants fell by up to 30%, and Rain has financed about US$2bn through it since August 2023 (The Block).
Comparison: Visa and Mastercard approaches
| Visa | Mastercard | |
|---|---|---|
| Network settlement in stablecoins | USDC settlement live in the US since 16 Dec 2025 | Not covered here; check Mastercard |
| Stablecoin-linked cards | More than 160 programmes (Sep 2026) | Card issuance via Global Money Platform |
| Payouts | Visa Direct stablecoin prefunding in production (Oct 2026) | Mastercard Move payouts via Global Money Platform |
| Partner named | Inyo Global | BVNK; Nuvei and Marqeta among launch users (CoinDesk) |
Illustrative example: a card programme's settlement
Illustrative example. The figures are invented.
A fintech issues 50,000 stablecoin-linked cards. Cardholders spend US$3m on a Saturday. The issuer converts cardholders' USDC as they spend, and settles its net obligation with Visa in USDC on Sunday rather than waiting for Monday's bank wire. Its working-capital need drops because it no longer carries the weekend gap. Disputes, fraud and merchant rules are unchanged.
WarningStablecoin settlement does not make a high-risk merchant easier to acquire. MCC rules, Visa's integrity risk programme and acquirer approvals apply in full.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| August 2023 | Rain begins using Credit Coop's facility for Visa settlement |
| 2025 | Visa Direct stablecoin prefunding and payout pilots |
| 16 Dec 2025 | Visa launches US USDC settlement |
| 29 Apr 2026 | US$7bn run rate; pilot expanded to nine blockchains (The Block) |
| 8 Sep 2026 | US$20bn run rate; more than 160 card programmes |
| 15 Oct 2026 | Visa Direct stablecoin prefunding in production; Mastercard and BVNK Global Money Platform |
Q/A
Does a merchant get paid in USDC?
Not through normal card acceptance. Settlement in USDC is between the network and its issuers or acquirers.
Can a high-risk acquirer settle with Visa in USDC?
Subject to Visa's eligibility. It does not change merchant-level risk rules.
Which chains does Visa use?
Its US launch began on Solana; it has also said it plans to use Circle's Arc. The Block reported a nine-chain pilot in April 2026.
What about chargebacks?
Unchanged. Card rules govern disputes.
Sources
- Visa, USDC settlement in the United States (16 December 2025): https://corporate.visa.com/en/sites/visa-perspectives/newsroom/visa-launches-stablecoin-settlement-in-the-united-states.html
- Visa, Visa Direct launches stablecoin-powered money movement (15 October 2026): https://investor.visa.com/news/news-details/2026/Visa-Direct-Launches-Stablecoin-Powered-Money-Movement-as-Pilots-Move-to-Production/default.aspx
- The Block, Visa settlement tops US$20bn run rate (8 September 2026): https://www.theblock.co/news/business/2026-09-08-visa-stablecoin-settlement-tops-20-billion-annualized-run-rate-up-more-than-15x-year-over-year-413749
- The Block, Visa settlement expands to nine blockchains (29 April 2026): https://www.theblock.co/news/markets/2026-04-29-visa-stablecoin-settlement-hits-7-billion-run-rate-pilot-expands-nine-blockchains-399405
- Equity Ledger, crypto payments weekly review (23 October 2026): https://www.equity-ledger.com/articles/crypto-payments-weekly-review-2026-10-23
- CoinDesk, stablecoin payments jump 45% (18 October 2026): https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/10/18/stablecoin-supply-stalls-but-payments-jump-45-as-visa-mastercard-and-stripe-connect-crypto-to-cash
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