Visa Expands its USD Coin ($USDC) Settlement Capabilities to Solana

World funds big Visa has introduced its newest transfer to modernize cross-border monetary transactions.
What Is USD Coin (USDC)?
USDC, or USD Coin, is a sort of stablecoin that’s pegged to the U.S. greenback. Every USDC token is supposed to be equal to 1 U.S. greenback, held in reserve by regulated monetary establishments. The first goal of USDC is to supply the soundness of the U.S. greenback whereas benefiting from the operational benefits of a cryptocurrency, similar to quick transactions, low charges, and 24/7 availability.
Stablecoins like USDC are sometimes used for varied functions throughout the cryptocurrency ecosystem, together with:
- Buying and selling: They supply a secure asset to commerce towards risky cryptocurrencies.
- Funds: For fast and low-cost transactions, particularly cross-border ones.
- DeFi: Utilized in decentralized finance functions for lending, borrowing, or incomes curiosity.
- Settlements: For settling transactions between completely different events effectively.
USDC is an ERC-20 token, which suggests it operates on the Ethereum blockchain, however it’s also out there on different blockchains like Solana, as talked about in Visa’s press launch.
Visa’s Help for Solana-Powered USDC
Based on Visa’s press release, the corporate is extending its stablecoin settlement capabilities to the Solana blockchain and its current assist for Ethereum. This enlargement is a part of a collaboration with service provider acquirers Worldpay and Nuvei.
Visa has already performed dwell pilot applications, transferring tens of millions of USDC stablecoins between its companions over each the Solana and Ethereum blockchain networks. These transactions settled fiat-denominated funds approved by way of Visa’s world cost community, VisaNet.
The corporate says its treasury and settlement programs deal with the clearing, settlement, and motion of billions of {dollars} in transactions every day. This happens between practically 15,000 monetary establishments and throughout greater than 25 completely different currencies globally. Cuy Sheffield, Head of Crypto at Visa, emphasised that the corporate is dedicated to leveraging stablecoins and blockchain networks to enhance the velocity and effectivity of cross-border settlements.
Right here is why what Visa is saying issues:
- Enlargement of Stablecoin Capabilities: Visa had already been utilizing USDC stablecoins for settlements, however this announcement extends that functionality to the Solana blockchain. That is vital as a result of Solana is understood for its high-performance capabilities, together with sooner transaction speeds and decrease prices.
- Service provider Acquirer Involvement: Beforehand, Visa’s focus had been extra on the issuer aspect of transactions. The brand new announcement signifies a shift towards involving service provider acquirers like Worldpay and Nuvei. This goals to hurry up settlement occasions for retailers, which might be significantly useful for these concerned within the crypto and blockchain area.
- World Affect: Visa’s huge community spans practically 15,000 monetary establishments and operates in over 25 currencies. The combination of stablecoins like USDC into this community may have a far-reaching influence, doubtlessly revolutionizing how cross-border transactions are performed.
- Continued Innovation: This transfer builds upon Visa’s earlier work, together with profitable pilot applications that examined using USDC for settlements. By increasing its stablecoin and blockchain capabilities, Visa is positioning itself as a frontrunner within the evolving digital funds panorama.
Based on a Cointelegraph report revealed earlier right now, Visa initiated a pilot program in 2021 with Crypto.com to discover using Ethereum-based USD Coin (USDC) for settling cross-border funds associated to its Australian card program. This transfer streamlined the beforehand cumbersome multi-day foreign money conversion and wire switch price course of. Crypto.com now leverages a Visa treasury-managed account with USDC issuer Circle to expedite worldwide transfers, lowering each time and complexity via the Ethereum blockchain.
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