Visa Shatters Banking Hours: Launches 24/7 USDC Settlement for US Banks via Solana

Visa just rewired the plumbing of global finance. The payments giant is now settling transactions for U.S. banks in USDC—around the clock—using the Solana blockchain. This isn't a pilot program; it's a full-scale bypass of the legacy settlement rails that have kept money moving at a snail's pace.

The Old Guard Gets a Blockchain Upgrade

Forget waiting for business days or watching the clock for cut-off times. Visa's new system allows participating financial institutions to send and receive USDC settlements instantly, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It leverages Solana's high-throughput network to finalize transactions in seconds, a stark contrast to the multi-day delays typical in traditional correspondent banking. The move effectively turns stablecoins from a speculative asset into a core utility for institutional cash movement.

Why Solana? Speed and Scale.

The choice of network is no accident. Visa's nod to Solana highlights a demand for settlement infrastructure that's not just digital, but brutally efficient. The blockchain's capability to handle thousands of transactions per second at minimal cost makes it a pragmatic backbone for a volume-heavy player like Visa. It's a silent endorsement of a chain built for scale over philosophical purity.

A Quiet Revolution in Plain Sight

This rollout signals a profound shift. Major U.S. banks can now hold and manage dollar-denominated reserves directly on a public blockchain for operational purposes. It's the kind of adoption that happens in the back office, far from retail trading apps, but it fundamentally changes what's possible. The friction of moving millions between institutions evaporates—poof—replaced by a few lines of code.

The real story here isn't just innovation; it's inevitability. When a pillar of the traditional financial system starts using crypto rails for its core function, the debate is over. The infrastructure won. The only thing left for the old guard to do is adapt or get left watching the clock—a clock that, thankfully for them, no longer matters.

Modernizing bank settlement with USDC

The USDC settlement introduces a concept of seven-day settlement windows that will enable the settling of funds outside the working days. Consequently, managing liquidity will improve, and the working of the treasuries will happen automatically with high accuracy. Furthermore, the system will provide interoperability between the traditional payment channels and the blockchain environment.

The capability was praised by the Lead Bank, with the CEO, Jackie Reses, remarking, “This capability brings speed and precision to treasury operations and helps us deliver modern financial services to the communities we serve.”

Cross River Bank also emphasized the importance of integrating stablecoins with existing product suites. Founder and CEO Gilles Gade noted, “A unified platform that natively supports both stablecoins and traditional payment networks is the foundation for how value will move globally.” Both banks demonstrate the growing demand for bank-grade blockchain solutions that combine reliability, speed, and interoperability.

Visa and Circle’s strategic collaboration

Visa is also a design partner of Arc, a novel LAYER 1 blockchain that is being developed by the company Circle and is in the process of testing on the public testnet. Arc is envisioned to provide the performance and scalability that would allow it to support Visa’s commercial activity on the blockchain. Visa will use Arc for the settlement of USDC and will maintain a validator node when the blockchain goes live.

The firm has already observed the pilot of stablecoin settlements in Latin America, Europe, APAC, and CEMEA. By November 2025, the monthly volume of stablecoin settlements had reached an annualized volume of $3.5 billion. This is indicative of the adoption trends of blockchain payments.

Guidance and regulatory context

To support financial institutions, Visa Consulting & Analytics launched its Global Stablecoins Advisory Practice. The service provides strategic guidance, market insights, and implementation support. 

Carl Rutstein, Global Head of VCA, explained that stablecoins are becoming essential in today’s digital world. He said, “Having a comprehensive stablecoins strategy is critical in today’s digital landscape. Clients come to Visa and VCA for guidance because they trust our ability to navigate change.”

Regulations are keeping pace with Visa’s rollout. The GENIUS Act, passed in July 2025, sets clear rules for U.S. stablecoin issuers. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called it a “win-win-win” for users, issuers, and the government, highlighting that it helps widen access to the U.S. dollar globally and boosts demand for U.S. Treasuries.

Visa’s USDC settlement allows banks to process transactions faster, even on weekends, while staying compliant and secure. Linking traditional banking with blockchain helps banks manage funds more efficiently.

Also Read: Ripple’s RLUSD Stablecoin Expands to Optimism, Base, and Other L2s