Credit card giant Visa (V) is launching USDC settlement in the United States, allowing issuers and acquirer partners to settle obligations to the card network in Circle’s U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin.
According to a press release issued by Visa on Tuesday, the move marks the entry into the U.S. phase of the stablecoin settlement program, which as of November 30 has reached an annualized run rate of $3.5 billion.
The new option is designed to provide banks and fintech companies with near-instant funds movement, settlement seven days a week, and more predictable liquidity during weekends and holidays, while keeping the consumer card experience unchanged.
Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies that are pegged to fiat currencies or assets such as gold. They underpin much of the crypto economy, serving as payment rails and vehicles for moving funds across borders. Tether’s USDT is the largest stablecoin, followed by Circle’s USDC.
Initial participants include Cross River Bank and Lead Bank, which are settling with Visa in USDC via the Solana blockchain.
“Visa is expanding stablecoin settlement because our bank partners are not only asking for it, but are ready to use it,” Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s global head of growth products and strategic partnerships, said in a press release.
The company said it expects to expand access to more U.S. partners by 2026 and encourages interested customers to work through their account teams as availability expands.
The network is also deepening its ties with Circle by serving as a primary design partner for Circle’s Arc blockchain, and plans to support Arc for USDC settlement, including operating validator nodes once the chain goes live.
Visa first experimented with USDC settlement in 2021, and in 2023 became one of the first major payment networks to settle transactions in stablecoins. It has since added support for more blockchains and stablecoins to its pilot program to give partners the flexibility to settle VisaNet obligations.
The new launch in the US is targeted at financial institutions, fintech companies and treasury teams looking to modernize settlement processes, enhance liquidity management and build programmable money movement products that connect traditional banking systems with blockchain-based infrastructure.
Read more: Stablecoin adoption is “exploding” — here’s why Wall Street is going all-in
