Visa Expands Stablecoin Settlement Support to Nine Blockchains

Visa has expanded its stablecoin settlement pilot to nine supported blockchains after adding five new networks, while reporting that the program's annualized settlement run rate has reached $7 billion with 50% quarter-over-quarter growth.

The payments giant said on April 29, 2026 that it added Arc, Base, Canton, Polygon and Tempo to the pilot. The five new chains join Avalanche, Ethereum, Solana and Stellar, which were already supported.

Visa said the pilot reached a $7 billion annualized stablecoin settlement run rate, up 50% from the prior quarter.

How Visa Built From Four Chains to Nine in Under a Year

The expansion marks a sharp acceleration. On July 31, 2025, Visa's investor announcement disclosed that the program then supported four stablecoins and four blockchains, after adding Avalanche, Stellar, USDG, PYUSD and EURC to the original USDC-on-Ethereum setup.

By November 30, 2025, Visa reported that annualized monthly stablecoin settlement volume had surpassed $3.5 billion. That figure has now doubled to the current run rate in roughly five months.

The trajectory matters more than the raw number. Going from four chains and $3.5 billion to nine chains and $7 billion suggests that each new network addition is bringing incremental settlement volume rather than simply adding idle infrastructure.

Why Nine Blockchains Changes the Settlement Calculus

Supporting nine blockchains gives Visa's settlement partners meaningful optionality. Acquirers and issuers can choose settlement rails based on speed, cost and regional liquidity rather than being locked into a single chain.

The mix of chains is notable. Base and Polygon are high-throughput, low-fee networks popular in DeFi. Canton is a privacy-focused chain designed for institutional finance. Arc and Tempo are newer entrants targeting specific settlement corridors.

Rubail Birwadker, who leads the initiative at Visa, said the approach reflects where their partners are heading.

"Our partners are building in a multi-chain world."
— Rubail Birwadker, Visa

That framing positions the expansion as demand-driven rather than experimental. Visa is matching the chains its issuer and acquirer partners already use, not picking winners in the Layer 1 race.

Institutional Stablecoin Payments in Context

Visa's expansion arrives as stablecoin infrastructure becomes a competitive battleground among traditional payment processors. The broader stablecoin sector now carries a market capitalization above $292 billion, with USDC alone accounting for roughly $77.2 billion of that total.

The announcement also lands amid active U.S. stablecoin policy debates, including discussion around the GENIUS Act. Visa framed the update as an operational expansion of an existing pilot rather than a response to any specific regulatory development.

Other corners of the payments industry are moving in parallel. Meta reportedly launched USDC creator payouts through Stripe, signaling that stablecoin settlement is spreading beyond card networks into platform economies. Meanwhile, Tether's merger proposal with Twenty One Capital highlights how stablecoin issuers themselves are restructuring to capture more of the payments value chain.

What Remains Unclear

Visa has not disclosed which specific stablecoins are supported on each of the five new chains. The original four-chain setup included USDC, EURC, USDG and PYUSD, but it is not confirmed that all four are live across all nine networks from day one.

Geographic availability is another open question. Visa launched stablecoin settlement in the United States in late 2025, but the April 2026 announcement did not specify whether the new chains expand coverage to additional markets.

Settlement volume per chain has not been broken out. The $7 billion annualized figure is an aggregate, and without per-chain data it is not possible to assess how much traffic the newer networks are actually handling versus the original Ethereum and Solana rails.

FAQ: Visa's Stablecoin Settlement Expansion

What did Visa expand?

Visa added five new blockchains to its stablecoin settlement pilot: Arc, Base, Canton, Polygon and Tempo. The pilot previously supported Avalanche, Ethereum, Solana and Stellar.

Why does nine blockchains matter?

More supported chains give settlement participants flexibility to choose rails based on transaction cost, speed and regional liquidity. It also reduces single-chain dependency risk for institutional settlement workflows.

How fast is stablecoin settlement growing at Visa?

The annualized run rate grew from $3.5 billion as of November 2025 to $7 billion in the latest quarter, representing 50% quarter-over-quarter growth.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.