Key Takeaways:
- Visa announced a stablecoin prefunding pilot for cross-border transactions via its Visa Direct platform.
- The program allows businesses to pre-fund payouts with stablecoins, replacing the need for fiat reserves.
- Recipients will continue to receive local currencies, while stablecoins serve as the funding layer.
- The pilot will involve select financial institutions, with limited availability expected by April 2026.
Visa Inc announced on Monday a pilot program to allow businesses to pre-fund cross-border payments using stablecoins through its Visa Direct platform, in a move aimed at reducing settlement friction and improving liquidity management.
The initiative, revealed at the SIBOS 2025 conference, marks the first time Visa Direct will use stablecoins as a source of funding. Traditionally, cross-border transactions have required pre-funding with fiat currencies, often tying up capital for days in intermediary accounts. The new pilot seeks to modernize that process by enabling institutions to allocate stablecoins to Visa Direct in advance, with those digital assets treated as immediate liquidity.
“Cross-border payments have been stuck in outdated systems for far too long,” said Chris Newkirk, President of Commercial & Money Movement Solutions at Visa. “This integration lays the groundwork for money to move instantly across the world.”
Visa said the pilot is designed for financial institutions, banks, and remittance providers that require more flexible liquidity options. However, settlement to end recipients will still be made in local fiat currencies, despite the use of stablecoins in the funding process.
Additionally, the company said it is working with selected partners to trial the service, with a broader rollout expected in 2026.
Visa’s step comes as more financial firms look to integrate blockchain-based assets into conventional payment systems. The company has already tested stablecoins in settlement pilots, but this is the first time it is applying them to prefunding within its real-time payments network.
Visa’s Path: From Payments to Blockchain
Visa has been testing blockchain applications for several years. In 2021, it completed its first settlement transaction using the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin on the Ethereum network in partnership with Crypto.com.
The company has since expanded its work through initiatives such as the Visa Tokenized Asset Platform, designed to help financial institutions issue and manage digital assets, and has collaborated with more than 70 crypto wallets on payment solutions.
Visa’s in-house crypto team has also explored smart contracts and other blockchain integrations as part of its broader effort to connect digital currencies with its global payments network.
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