Visa to Allow U.S. Institutions to Settle Transactions Using Circle’s USDC on Solana
Visa just handed the traditional finance world a crypto-shaped key—and it opens the door to Solana.
Breaking the Settlement Bottleneck
Forget waiting days for cross-border wires to clear. Visa's new pilot program lets U.S. financial institutions settle transactions directly with Circle’s USDC stablecoin. The twist? It's all happening on the Solana blockchain, not the old-guard financial rails. This move bypasses the legacy correspondent banking system entirely, slashing settlement times from a sluggish multi-day process to near-instant finality.
Why Solana? Speed and Scale.
The choice of Solana isn't random. Its architecture is built for high throughput and low cost—critical for handling Visa-level transaction volumes. This isn't a test of a niche blockchain; it's a stress test for mainstream crypto adoption. The network's performance under this real-world load will be watched by every major payment processor on the planet.
A Quiet Revolution in Treasury Management
For participating institutions, this isn't just about faster settlements. It's a fundamental shift in treasury operations. Holding USDC on-chain for settlements creates a 24/7, programmable treasury function. Funds aren't trapped in accounts over weekends or holidays; they're liquid digital assets. Of course, this also means CFOs now have to worry about private key management instead of just bank relationship managers—a trade-off some might call progress.
The regulatory green light for this pilot speaks volumes. It signals a growing comfort level with using public blockchains for material, institutional-scale settlement—a concept that would have been dismissed as reckless just a few years ago. The old financial guard is learning to code, or at least, learning to pay with it.
This is more than an integration; it's an infiltration. Visa isn't just adopting crypto—it's deploying it to solve a core, expensive inefficiency in its own network. The real story isn't that crypto is going mainstream. It's that mainstream finance is finally admitting its own plumbing is obsolete. After all, what's the point of a 'stable' currency if it takes three business days and a handful of intermediary fees to move it?
Faster Settlement for U.S. Banks?
By allowing USDC settlement, Visa said it is offering banks and fintechs faster funds movement over blockchain networks, seven-day availability, and improved resilience during weekends and holidays.
Initial participants include Cross River Bank and Lead Bank, both of which are settling transactions with Visa in USDC over the Solana blockchain. Visa said broader availability for U.S. institutions is planned through 2026.
Blockchain Infrastructure and Arc Partnership
Visa said it is also deepening its collaboration with Circle by serving as a design partner for Arc, a new LAYER 1 blockchain currently in public testnet. Arc is being built to support high-performance, large-scale commercial activity onchain.
Visa plans to use Arc for USDC settlement within its network and intends to operate a validator node once the blockchain goes live, further integrating blockchain infrastructure into its Core settlement processes.
Modernizing Treasury and Liquidity Management
According to Visa, U.S. stablecoin settlement allow seven-day settlement windows, improved liquidity management, and greater automation for participating banks. The framework is designed to bridge traditional payment rails with blockchain-based infrastructure while maintaining Visa’s standards for security, compliance, and reliability.
“Financial institutions are preparing to use stablecoins as part of their treasury operations,” said Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s Global Head of Growth Products and Strategic Partnerships. “USDC settlement gives banks a faster, programmable option that integrates with existing systems.”
Building on a Global Stablecoin Track Record
This latest U.S. launch builds on Visa’s earlier stablecoin settlement pilots across Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East and Africa. Visa began experimenting with USDC settlement in 2021 and became one of the first major payment networks to settle transactions in a stablecoin in 2023.
Circle said the U.S. expansion represents a milestone for institutional adoption of stablecoins, while early banking partners highlighted benefits such as clearer liquidity timing and API-driven settlement.
Visa said it will continue to expand its stablecoin capabilities and recently launched a Stablecoins Advisory Practice through Visa Consulting & Analytics to help financial institutions assess and implement stablecoin strategies.
@Visa launches a stablecoin advisory service to help banks and fintechs navigate regulation and adoption as the market tops $300B. #Stablecoins #DigitalPayments https://t.co/9APTexHQ0X
Binance Blockchain Week Highlights Stablecoin Momentum
Speaking at Binance Blockchain Week 2025, Binance CEO Richard Teng focused heavily on the rapid expansion of the stablecoin market, describing stablecoins as one of crypto’s most effective real-world use cases. He said global stablecoin market capitalisation climbed by nearly 50% this year, while the number of wallets holding stablecoins has also risen by around 50%.
Teng highlighted transaction data as evidence that stablecoins are moving firmly into the financial mainstream. He noted that daily stablecoin transaction volumes have now surpassed those processed by Visa.
Teng also attributed this growth to improving regulatory clarity, including recent progress in the US, and pointed to emerging-market initiatives such as Bhutan’s nationwide crypto payments system built on Binance Pay as examples of how stablecoins are increasingly being used as core payment infrastructure rather than speculative instruments.
