Visa said it is expanding its on-chain payment infrastructure by using stablecoins to secure settlement funds for card payments, a move aimed at easing funding pressure for issuers in the fast-growing stablecoin-linked card market.

According to Visa, card issuers on its network need to secure funds to meet daily settlement obligations, and early stablecoin card companies have faced difficulties doing that efficiently. To address the issue, Visa has set up a stablecoin-based funding structure through the on-chain credit market Credit Coop.

Under the arrangement, issuers can borrow stablecoins through Credit Coop credit lines and repay those loans once card payment funds are received. Visa said the borrowing and repayment processes are recorded on-chain and automated through smart contracts, creating a settlement workflow tied directly to blockchain-based credit infrastructure.

Visa said there were more than 160 stablecoin-linked card programs worldwide as of the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, while payment volumes in that segment were up about 200% from a year earlier. It also said its stablecoin settlement volume has recently exceeded $20 billion on an annualized basis, more than 15 times the level of the previous year.

The company added that Credit Coop has supplied more than $2.5 billion in funding since 2023, and that cumulative settlement funds related to Rain have reached $2 billion. Visa and Credit Coop also plan to introduce a just-in-time settlement funding method that would allow issuers to borrow stablecoins automatically when needed.

Why It Matters

The development pushes stablecoins further into backend payment infrastructure rather than limiting them to treasury transfers or consumer-facing wallet activity. By targeting settlement funding, Visa is testing whether on-chain credit and programmable repayment can support a routine part of card-network operations.

It also highlights a more practical stage of stablecoin adoption, where the focus shifts from token issuance and card branding to liquidity, settlement timing, and issuer operations. If that model gains traction, it could strengthen the role of stablecoins in cross-border and card-linked payment flows without requiring a full redesign of existing payment rails.