Visa has launched a pilot that lets financial institutions use digital dollars and euros as settlement balances, a move designed to cut the time and cost of international transfers.

Instead of tying up fiat funds for days, banks and money-transfer firms can now preload Visa Direct with stablecoins such as USDC and EURC. Those balances are treated the same as traditional cash, allowing payouts to reach end users in minutes while still arriving in local currency. Visa says the model offers businesses faster access to liquidity and greater flexibility in managing global operations.

Laying the Groundwork for Mainstream Adoption

The pilot is limited to select partners for now, with a broader rollout expected by April 2026. Visa has not disclosed the institutions involved but confirmed Circle’s stablecoins are the first to be tested. More digital assets could be added later as demand grows.

Asked whether Visa might issue its own token, company representatives left the door open, though they stressed the immediate goal is scaling use cases for existing stablecoins through card payments, settlement flows, and bank integrations.

A Strategy Years in the Making

The launch builds on several initiatives Visa has been experimenting with globally. It previously partnered with Stripe-owned Bridge to create Visa cards linked directly to stablecoin balances, giving merchants worldwide access to digital currency spending. In Africa, the company teamed with Yellow Card to explore stablecoin-based treasury tools. It has also piloted settlement for card issuers using stablecoins and developed a Tokenized Asset Platform to help banks test issuing their own digital money.

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Regulatory Tailwinds and Market Potential

Visa’s move comes after the passage of the U.S. GENIUS Act, the first federal law to establish clear ground rules for stablecoins. With forecasts suggesting a trillion-dollar market opportunity, global payment providers see digital assets as a way to modernize cross-border transactions while offering stability in countries with volatile currencies.

Chris Newkirk, Visa’s president of commercial and money movement solutions, said the industry is overdue for change. “Cross-border payments have been stuck in outdated systems for too long. Stablecoins integrated into Visa Direct can transform how money moves worldwide.”

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