Visa has selected United Kingdom–based stablecoin infrastructure provider BVNK to power new Visa Direct pilots. This initiative allows some business customers to pre-fund cross-border payouts in stablecoins and deliver digital US dollars directly to recipients’ wallets in select markets.
The partnership, announced Wednesday, builds on Visa’s earlier stablecoin experiments, including on-chain settlement tests with USDC on networks such as Ethereum and Solana. This move follows a strategic investment in BVNK made in May 2025 through Visa Ventures, as card schemes race to embed tokenized dollars into their treasury and payout rails.
Citi Ventures also acquired a stake in BVNK in October 2025, joining Visa Ventures among the startup’s backers. This reflects Wall Street’s broader push into stablecoin infrastructure.
Visa executives described the partnership as part of a long-running effort to modernize money movement with new rails that operate beyond traditional bank operating hours. They called stablecoins “an exciting opportunity for global payments.”
A BVNK spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the company has “a great relationship with Visa,” but emphasized that the initiative was awarded through “a competitive tender.” The spokesperson added that BVNK is “best in class and winning the race in this competitive space.” Both companies share “a deep understanding of the enormous potential of stablecoins to reduce friction and expand access to faster, more efficient payment options.”
### BVNK’s Rapid Rise Following Coinbase Deal Collapse
This deal marks a swift return to prominence for BVNK after Coinbase and the startup mutually agreed not to proceed with a proposed $2 billion acquisition in November last year following due diligence. At the time, BVNK was seen as a way for Coinbase to boost stablecoin-related revenue and compete with Wall Street firms and major payment networks like Western Union, MoneyGram, and SWIFT, which have been ramping up their own stablecoin strategies.
The BVNK spokesperson confirmed the company is currently working on pilot programs with “a limited set of Visa Direct enterprise clients in high-demand markets.” The broader roadmap includes “expansion to additional corridors, currencies, stablecoins, and customer segments based on regulatory approval and customer demand.”
### Stablecoins’ Growing Footprint
Stablecoins have become one of the largest segments within the crypto industry, with a global market capitalization around $280 billion as of late 2025, according to the European Central Bank’s (ECB) latest Financial Stability Review.
An analysis from the International Monetary Fund estimates that global stablecoin transaction volumes have already reached between $3 trillion and $4 trillion annually, highlighting their increasing role in cross-border payments and trading.
Additionally, a joint report by on-chain analysis platforms Artemis and Dune revealed that active stablecoin wallets grew by over 50% from February 2024 to February 2025.
### Regulatory Landscape: The CLARITY Act and Stablecoin Rewards
BVNK’s new role with Visa emerges amid an evolving regulatory environment. Authorities such as the ECB warn that rapidly increasing stablecoin usage could pose spillover risks to bank funding, even as stablecoins promise lower-friction global payments and remittances.
In the United States, lawmakers continue to debate the CLARITY Act and related market structure proposals. Recent drafts addressing stablecoin rewards aim to define the extent to which regulated companies like Visa and BVNK can offer yield or reward features on payment-focused stablecoin products.
A BVNK spokesperson noted that stablecoin payouts are “restricted to compliant wallets and counterparties” and are “designed to align with evolving frameworks,” including the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA), as well as UK and US regulatory regimes.
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**Related:**
– BVNK raises $50 million to expand into the US stablecoin market
– Stablecoin card adoption is expected to be a “big theme” of 2026, according to a Dragonfly executive
Visa and BVNK’s collaboration illustrates the growing momentum behind stablecoins as a transformative force in global payments, signaling broader adoption and innovation in digital finance.
https://bitcoinethereumnews.com/tech/visa-partners-with-bvnk-on-stablecoin-payout-pilots/