Visa, after pilot testing, is implementing USDC payments for American banks

The global payment system Visa is moving forward with integrating stable cryptocurrencies into its infrastructure. After years of experimentation, the company officially launches the ability to settle transactions in USDC (USD Coin) from Circle for American financial institutions and fintech companies. This launch marks the transition of the pilot program into the implementation phase, although access will be gradually expanded until 2026.

The program demonstrated impressive results during the testing period. As of the end of November this year, the annual transaction volume in USDC through the Visa payment network reached $3.5 billion. This indicates a growing interest among financial institutions in using stablecoins for settling obligations within the payment network.

USDC Achieves Significant Turnover via Visa After Intensive Testing

USD Coin continues to strengthen its position in the crypto market. With a current price of $1.00 and a market capitalization of $70.16 billion, USDC is the second-largest stable asset after USDT from Tether. The ability to use USDC for transactions with one of the largest payment networks in the world significantly broadens the coin’s application scope within the traditional financial system. The system provides nearly instant fund transfers, 24/7 operations, and more predictable liquidity management during weekends and holidays, while maintaining the familiar user experience of consumer cards.

Cross River Bank and Lead Bank Become the First Participants in the Program in the USA

In the initial phase of implementation, the program attracted two major American banks. Cross River Bank and Lead Bank serve as pilot participants, conducting settlements with Visa in USDC via the Solana blockchain. The choice of Solana as the primary platform indicates Visa’s commitment to working with fast and cost-efficient blockchains.

The company plans to expand access to the program for more partners throughout 2026. Interested financial institutions can contact their account managers for more information on joining the system. The program is aimed at financial institutions, fintech companies, and treasury departments seeking to modernize settlement processes and create programmable solutions for capital movement that connect traditional banking systems with blockchain infrastructure.

Circle’s Arc Blockchain Gains Status as a Strategic Partner of Visa

In addition to supporting USDC settlements, Visa is strengthening its partnership with Circle through interaction with the company’s own blockchain — Arc. The payment system will serve as the main development partner for Arc and plans to launch its own validator node after the network goes live. This step indicates an increased division of responsibilities between the two companies in developing blockchain infrastructure for stablecoins.

The collaboration between Visa and Circle continues. The first experiment with USDC settlements was conducted by the company in 2021, and since 2023, it has begun adding support for various blockchains and stable assets into its pilot program. The ongoing expansion of supported protocols allows Visa partners to choose the most suitable method for settling obligations within the VisaNet payment network.