Visa Expands Stablecoin Settlement Network Across CEMEA as USDC Adoption Surges

Source: ETHNews Original Title: Visa Expands Stablecoin Settlement Network Across CEMEA as USDC Adoption Surges Original Link: https://www.ethnews.com/visa-expands-stablecoin-settlement-network-across-cemea-as-usdc-adoption-surges/ Visa is accelerating its stablecoin strategy with a major expansion into cross-border settlements across Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA).

The company is deepening its use of digital dollars such as USDC to modernize money movement, reduce friction, and deliver faster settlement for banks, fintechs, and payment providers in regions where traditional rails remain slow and costly.

Visa pushes stablecoin settlement into new regions

The latest step came on November 27, 2025, when Visa unveiled a new partnership with Aquanow, a digital asset infrastructure provider. The integration enables round-the-clock settlement using stablecoins like USDC, helping institutions across the CEMEA region clear cross-border transactions without delays tied to legacy correspondent banking networks.

This builds on Visa’s earlier stablecoin experiments that began in 2023 and have steadily grown. Monthly settlement flows are now tracking above a $2.5 billion annualized run rate, signaling strong institutional demand for cheaper, programmable settlement rails.

Visa Direct pilot expands as businesses adopt USDC payouts

A second pillar of Visa’s strategy is its pilot program for stablecoin-powered payouts via Visa Direct. First launched in September 2025 and expanded in November, the program lets businesses pre-fund payout balances with USDC and send near-instant disbursements to compatible digital wallets.

The pilot specifically targets creator platforms, gig-economy companies, and global service marketplaces, industries where traditional banking hours and slow international transfers have historically created payout bottlenecks.

Visa adds more stablecoins and blockchains in 2025

Visa’s push has also involved broadening the menu of supported assets and networks. In July 2025, the company added several new stablecoins to its settlement stack, including:

• PayPal USD (PYUSD)
• Global Dollar (GUSD)
• EURC, a euro-backed stablecoin gaining momentum across Europe

These integrations give Visa more flexibility in choosing the cheapest, fastest settlement path depending on corridor and liquidity conditions.

Modernizing global money movement

Visa’s latest phase of stablecoin adoption reflects a clear goal: reducing the industry’s reliance on slow, multi-intermediary settlement systems. Stablecoins allow near-instant clearing, transparent reconciliation, and reduced counterparty dependencies, all features in growing demand across emerging markets with high remittance traffic and fragmented payment infrastructure.

With large financial institutions now integrating these tools into their daily operations, Visa’s stablecoin settlement network is quickly becoming one of the most mature digital-asset infrastructure layers in global finance.