Stablecoin Push: Visa and Mastercard Expand Payment Infrastructure
Visa and Mastercard are pushing stablecoins deeper into cross-border payments. The two companies have separately announced new initiatives to make it easier for businesses to use stablecoins in international transactions.
Visa has partnered with Zero Hash to offer stablecoin prefunding and wallet payouts to eligible Visa Direct clients. This means that clients can now hold stablecoins in their accounts, which can be used to fund future payouts or sent directly to compatible wallets.
Mastercard, on the other hand, is testing reusable assurance signals through its Mastercard Crypto Credential pilot. This will enable providers to reuse parts of the compliance work already completed, reducing the need for repeated due diligence reviews.
The announcements address some of the challenges associated with using blockchain transfers in cross-border payments, such as liquidity, wallet support, and network availability. However, foreign-exchange spreads, conversion or redemption charges, and local off-ramp fees still apply.