Visa headquarters building in Foster City, California

Visa Brings Onchain Lending to Stablecoin Card Programs

By Isaac • September 8, 2026 11:24 pm • Comments

Visa is moving another piece of stablecoin infrastructure out of the crypto sandbox and into everyday payments.

The payments giant announced a new onchain financing model for stablecoin-linked card programs and fintech companies. The idea is straightforward: combine VisaNet settlement data with blockchain lending infrastructure so lenders can see how a card program is performing and finance its daily obligations with better information.

According to Visa’s announcement, more than 160 stablecoin-linked card programs now operate on its network. Payment volume across those programs is up nearly 200% year over year, while Visa’s stablecoin settlement volume has passed a $20 billion annualized run rate—more than 15 times its level a year earlier.

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A stablecoin card can feel instant to the user, but the company behind it still has to meet Visa’s settlement obligations before it receives all of the money tied to cardholder activity. That timing gap creates a working-capital problem, especially for young programs operating around the clock.

Traditional credit lines can take months to arrange and often depend on bank hours, long operating histories and broad claims on a borrower’s assets. Visa’s model uses authorized settlement data and onchain transaction records to give lenders a live view of the receivables supporting the loan.

The first working example is Visa’s partnership with Credit Coop. Smart contracts automate funding, collateral management and repayment, while settlement flows provide the underlying performance data.

Visa’s detailed explainer says the arrangement has financed more than $2.5 billion in cumulative settlement volume since 2023, with zero defaults across participating facilities. It has also processed more than 3,000 borrow events and 9,000 repayments onchain.

The announcement shows how Visa is treating stablecoins as infrastructure that can support credit, settlement and treasury operations. The role extends beyond an asset customers spend through a card.

Visa says more than $694 billion in stablecoin-denominated loans have moved through onchain lending protocols since 2020. Most of that activity has remained inside crypto markets.

The company is now trying to connect the same programmable credit rails to payment businesses with real settlement receivables.

The model still carries risks. Smart-contract failures, bad underwriting, volatile collateral and regulatory changes can still cause losses.

The zero-default history covers the participating facilities to date. It does not establish how every future borrower will perform.

Even so, Visa’s move is a strong signal about where stablecoin adoption is heading. The next phase may be less about convincing consumers to hold a digital dollar and more about using stablecoins quietly behind the scenes—funding settlement seven days a week while the familiar card experience stays the same.

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