Visa has become the first leading payments network to support the USDC stablecoin and will use it to settle transactions on the Ethereum blockchain
Visa has become the first leading payments network in the world to support the USDC stablecoin. The company announced this yesterday, stating that it would settle payments in USDC coins on the Ethereum blockchain.
In a press release yesterday, Visa stated that its direct acceptance of the USDC coin would forge new connections between cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies. Until this moment, Visa settled transactions in fiat currencies only.
The company said that it would start with Crypto.com and expand its services to other platforms. “Visa is piloting the capability with Crypto.com, a Visa partner and one of the world’s largest crypto platforms, and plans to offer the USDC settlement capability to additional partners later this year”, the press release added.
In the past, Visa’s settlement process required Crypto.com to settle transactions in fiat currencies, making it expensive and complex for the firm. However, the USDC coin’s adoption means that Crypto.com doesn’t have to go through that again.
Visa’s chief product officer Jack Forestell stated, “The announcement today marks a major milestone in our ability to address the needs of fintechs managing their business in a stablecoin or cryptocurrency, and it’s really an extension of what we do every day, securely facilitating payments in all different currencies all across the world.”
Crypto.com co-founder and CEO Kris Marszalek is excited by this latest development. He stated that the firm wants to help millions of consumers globally access and use cryptocurrencies. Visa’s ability to directly accept and interact with cryptos makes it easier for them.
Visa will use crypto bank Anchorage as its settlement agent, implying that Crypto.com would send USDC to Visa’s Ethereum address at Anchorage. The payments giant will roll out the capability to other partners over the next few months after further testing and discussion with its clients and the regulatory board members.