Visa’s stablecoin settlement volume nears a $20 billion run rate as card networks race to plug in blockchain rails

Visa disclosed this month that its stablecoin-related payment volume has grown nearly 200% year over year, with settlement volume surpassing a $20 billion annualized run rate as of September 2026 — a sign that stablecoins have moved from a peripheral experiment to a measurable slice of the network’s settlement activity. On September 8, Visa announced it is combining VisaNet settlement data with blockchain-based lending infrastructure to provide working capital for stablecoin-linked card programs, in a model piloted with Credit Coop that uses smart contracts to automate financing and repayment against settlement receivables.

A day later, on September 9, Visa announced a separate pilot with MVB Financial and Velocity enabling stablecoin settlement within its Visa Direct network, which handles push-to-card payouts — the kind of instant transfers used for gig-worker pay, insurance claims and marketplace disbursements. Layering stablecoin settlement into Visa Direct specifically targets use cases where speed and finality of settlement matter most, rather than everyday retail card swipes.

Mastercard has moved on a parallel track: in June 2026 it expanded its own settlement capabilities to support USDC, PYUSD and RLUSD, letting card issuers settle transactions using those stablecoins rather than traditional fiat rails. Combined with its continued integration of blockchain technology to support weekend and intraday settlement — periods when traditional banking rails are typically closed or slower — Mastercard is pursuing the same underlying goal as Visa: using stablecoins to make settlement between banks, merchants and card issuers faster and less dependent on business-hours banking infrastructure.

For both networks, the strategic calculation is defensive as much as offensive. Stablecoins and blockchain rails have been pitched by crypto-native companies as an alternative to card networks entirely, potentially disintermediating Visa and Mastercard from transactions. By building stablecoin settlement directly into VisaNet and Mastercard’s backend rather than treating it as a threat, both networks are positioning themselves as the plumbing beneath stablecoin-based payments rather than being replaced by them — a bet that, if it works, keeps their networks central to commerce regardless of which settlement asset ultimately wins out.