Solana has entered into a partnership with Visa, a global payments leader. Solana’s lightning-fast blockchain technology will now play a pivotal role in Visa’s ambitious expansion of its stablecoin settlement pilot program, propelling cross-border payments into a new era of speed and efficiency.
Visa’s Bold Move to Leverage Solana for Faster Settlements
According to a press release, at the forefront of modernizing cross-border money movement, Visa is embracing Solana’s high-performance blockchain alongside merchant acquirers WorldPay and Nuvei. Together, they’re set to redefine the landscape of stablecoin settlement payments, focusing on USDC.
Visa has already conducted live pilots with issuers and acquirers, swiftly moving millions of USDC across the Solana and Ethereum blockchain networks to settle fiat-denominated payments. This advancement promises nearly instantaneous payment authorizations for Visa cardholders worldwide.
Behind the scenes, Visa’s treasury and settlement systems have quietly facilitated the daily clearing, settlement, and movement of billions in transactions. This complex dance involves coordination among nearly 15,000 financial institutions across over 25 currencies.
Cuy Sheffield, Head of Crypto at Visa, shared the significance of this collaboration, stating:
By leveraging stablecoins like USDC and global blockchain networks like Solana and Ethereum, we’re helping to improve the speed of cross-border settlement and providing a modern option for our clients to easily send or receive funds from Visa’s treasury.
The partnership between Visa and Crypto.com has been a pioneering example of stablecoin settlement, eliminating cumbersome currency conversion processes and costly international wire transfers. Crypto.com successfully utilized USDC to fulfill settlement obligations for Visa card transactions in Australia.
Jeremy Allaire, Co-founder and CEO of Circle, the company behind USDC, expressed excitement about the expanding pilot, describing how it opens up new possibilities for payments, commerce, and financial applications.
As per the press statement, Worldpay and Nuvei, global acquirers serving a diverse range of merchants, are set to benefit greatly from Visa’s stablecoin settlement capabilities. They can now receive settlement payouts in USDC, offering their merchants an attractive alternative to traditional fiat currencies.
Visa’s decision to add Solana as a supported blockchain for USDC settlement payments is a game-changer. With 400 millisecond block times and impressive transaction speeds, its high performance positions Visa as one of the first major payment companies to utilize Solana for live settlement payments at scale.
Related Reading | Grayscale Ruling Triggers Bitcoin Volatility While SEC’s ETF Delay Adds Uncertainty