Visa has been forced to shift course. The payment company is casting a net to find a new stablecoin settlement partner with cross-border licenses, filling the vacancy previously held by BVNK. This vacancy follows the move of their main competitor, Mastercard, which officially acquired BVNK earlier this year.
Through a newly circulated Request for Product (RFP) document, Visa has set strict criteria for potential partners. They require partners to hold a full crypto exchange license in four major jurisdictions: the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. This requirement serves as Visa’s foundation for weaving a legal transaction settlement network across key global markets.
The RFP document also details the duties of this new partner. They are expected to support various stablecoins, with a primary focus on handling Open USD (OUSD) settlement. OUSD is a joint stablecoin project directly backed by three major companies: Stripe, Visa, and Mastercard.
A New Chapter in the Payment Infrastructure Race
The urgent need to find a new partner goes hand in hand with Visa’s expansion plans. Just last month, they launched the Visa Stablecoin Platform, a dedicated ecosystem to facilitate banks and fintech companies entering the crypto space. Within this platform, OUSD immediately took the spot as the first supported token.
Visa’s development engine began accelerating after a billion-dollar maneuver. In late 2024, Stripe shook up the industry by acquiring Bridge - a stablecoin infrastructure provider - for $1.1 billion. This bold move practically forced legacy players like Visa and Mastercard to quickly polish their crypto networks to avoid missing the train.
Who is Most Ready to Dominate the $300 Billion Pie?
The money at stake in this war is massive. According to CoinGecko data, the total global stablecoin market capitalization currently stands at around $300 billion. It is this sheer volume that has triggered Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe to invest heavily in building the technological foundations of their digital money movement.
Interestingly, this three-way competition in the stablecoin space is heating up even as crypto market conditions remain sluggish. For these payment companies, fluctuations in the price of Bitcoin or altcoins are not an obstacle. They position stablecoins purely as the backbone of future transaction rails.
For the crypto industry, the entry of major credit card players into transaction settlement promises a direct bridge to traditional banking. Whoever succeeds in weaving the most solid infrastructure today will hold control over the direction of cross-border money flows in the future.
As reported by CoinDesk.
Read also: What is DeFi (Decentralized Finance)?
Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
