Visa taps into Solana to widen USDC payment capability

Global payments processor Visa has rolled out support for USD Coin (USDC) payments settled on the Solana blockchain as its stablecoin offering begins to expand.

Visa revealed that it is carrying out live and completed pilots with issuers and acquirers, moving millions of USDC tokens between partners across the Etheruem and Solana blockchains to settle fiat-based payments.

An announcement from the payments firm outlined the evolution of VISA’s adoption of USDC through pilots involving Crypto.com to integrations with merchant payment processors Worldpay and Nuvei.

The integration of USDC issued on Ethereum and Solana into Visa’s ecosystem means that the former can leverage Visa’s treasury and settlement systems to bridge traditional finance with Web3. Visa’s head of crypto Cuy Sheffield added that tapping into stablecoins USDC and blockchains like Ethereum and Solana help improve the speed of cross-border settlement.

1/ We are excited to announce that Visa has expanded our stablecoin settlement capabilities to merchant acquirers launching pilots with @Worldpay_Global and @Nuvei utilizing the Solana blockchainhttps://t.co/E0TjMO5xiH

— Cuy Sheffield (@cuysheffield) September 5, 2023

Visa began testing USDC in 2021 in collaboration with Crypto.com to test stablecoin settlement on the issuance side. The resulting pilot leveraged Ethereum-based USDC to receive payments from Crypto.com for cross-border volume on its Australian card program. 

Settlements for cross-border purchases made on Crypto.com Visa cards had previously required multiple day currency conversion processes and accrued wire transfer fees. As a result the crypto exchange now uses USDC for settlement obligations for its Australian Visa card.

Related: Visa explores crypto gas fees payments through cards

Crypto.com also uses a Visa treasury-managed account with USD Coin issuer Circle to send USDC across border on the Ethereum blockchain which reportedly reduces the length and complexity of international wire transfers.

Circle co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire said that the partnership marks a fundamental blockchain innovation that could alter payments and commerce:

“Circle built USDC to provide a functional digital dollar that could move at the speed of the internet to facilitate secure, reliable payments.”

The integration of USDC also allows Visa to send funds to USDC acquirers including Worldpay and Nuvei, which is expected to increase settlement times for merchants using their…