Visa and Mastercard Turn Stablecoins Into Their Next Settlement Layer
Visa and Mastercard are integrating stablecoins into their networks to settle transactions, effectively absorbing blockchain rails rather than being replaced by them.Summary
Visa and Mastercard are actively integrating stablecoins into their payment infrastructures, moving from initial tests to significant annualized settlement volumes. Visa reported a $7 billion annualized run rate for stablecoin settlements in April 2026, while Mastercard acquired BVNK for $1.8 billion to enhance its blockchain capabilities. These moves are strategic adaptations to the rise of AI agents and programmable money, which threaten to bypass traditional card networks due to lower fees. Despite the growth of stablecoin volumes, which some projections suggest could surpass Visa and Mastercard's combined transaction counts by 2031, the card networks are leveraging their existing advantages in global acceptance, fraud protection, and consumer trust. The future appears to be a convergence where stablecoins settle on-chain while card networks provide the acceptance layer, creating a hybrid system that benefits both incumbents and blockchain-native entities.
(Source：Webpronews)