Visa Adds Polygon and Base to Stablecoin Settlement Pilot

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Visa has added Polygon, Base, Arc, Canton and Tempo to its global stablecoin settlement pilot, expanding the program to nine blockchains as settlement volume continues to rise.

The payments company said the pilot has reached a $7 billion annualized stablecoin settlement run rate, up 50% from the previous quarter. The program allows issuers and acquirers to settle with Visa using supported blockchain networks.

Pilot Now Supports Nine Blockchains

The new additions expand Visa’s settlement support beyond Avalanche, Ethereum, Solana and Stellar. Visa said the change gives partners more options for accessing stablecoin liquidity across different ecosystems.

Polygon and Base bring two widely used public blockchain networks into the pilot. Arc, built by Circle, is focused on programmable money and stablecoin infrastructure. Canton is aimed at regulated capital markets, while Tempo is focused on faster, private and more efficient movement of stablecoin liquidity and settlement flows.

Visa said the move reflects a market where liquidity and activity are spread across multiple chains. Instead of pushing partners toward a single network, the company is positioning itself as a shared settlement layer across different blockchain environments.

Stablecoin Settlement Moves Beyond Testing

The $7 billion run rate is still small compared with Visa’s overall payments volume, but it suggests stablecoin settlement is becoming a more practical complement to traditional settlement rails

Visa said the pilot builds on live programs and regional rollouts across Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The company also pointed to its recent expansion of USDC settlement for US banks and more than 130 stablecoin-linked card programs in over 50 countries.

That matters because stablecoin settlement over blockchain infrastructure is increasingly being treated as a complement to traditional settlement rails. For payment companies, stablecoins can reduce settlement friction, support near real-time fund movement and operate outside traditional banking hours.

Visa Frames the Expansion as a Multi-Chain Strategy

Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s global head of growth products and strategic partnerships, said partners are building in a multi-chain world and expect settlement options to match that reality.

The approach also helps Visa stay close to stablecoin infrastructure without depending on a single chain or issuer. By supporting several networks, Visa can work with banks, fintechs and crypto firms that have different liquidity needs, compliance requirements and technical preferences.

For Polygon and Base, the move gives both networks a stronger role in institutional payments infrastructure. For Arc, Canton and Tempo, the pilot offers early validation from one of the world’s largest payment networks.

Payment Firms are Racing Into Stablecoins

Visa’s expansion comes as stablecoins become more important to payment networks, fintechs and banks. The market is moving beyond exchange settlement and crypto-native transfers into cards, remittances, treasury flows and merchant payments.

The key test is whether stablecoin settlement can scale while meeting the compliance, liquidity and operating standards expected in traditional finance.

The company is building multi-chain settlement infrastructure that can plug into its existing network while giving partners more ways to move tokenized dollars through global payment flows