Visa Expands Stablecoin Reach with Avalanche, Stellar, and Three New Tokens

Visa is accelerating its move into blockchain-powered finance, announcing Thursday that it has expanded support for stablecoin settlements across a broader range of digital assets and networks. The payments giant now facilitates transactions using PayPal’s PYUSD, Paxos-issued USDG, and Circle’s euro-backed EURC.

In a significant infrastructure upgrade, Visa also added compatibility with Avalanche and Stellar blockchains—networks that underpin AVAX and XLM, two of the industry's top 25 digital assets by market capitalization. Until now, Visa’s stablecoin capabilities were limited to Ethereum and Solana.

"Trusted, scalable, and interoperable stablecoins can transform global money movement," said Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s Global Head of Growth Products and Strategic Partnerships.

The expansion underscores Visa’s long-term commitment to digital asset integration. Since first supporting USDC on Ethereum in 2021, the firm has rolled out a series of crypto-related initiatives, including a recent partnership with Stripe’s Bridge unit to deliver stablecoin-linked debit cards across Latin America.

The momentum for stablecoins has grown dramatically. Originally favored by crypto traders to sidestep traditional banks, these tokens have since drawn interest from banks, Big Tech players like Meta and Amazon, and even U.S. state governments. That enthusiasm was cemented earlier this month when President Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law—the first sweeping federal framework for stablecoin regulation, covering reserve standards, audit requirements, and cross-market trading rules.

Despite Thursday’s crypto-forward announcement, Visa's stock closed 1.5% lower, while AVAX traded at $22.59 (down 2.4%) and XLM held steady at $0.40.

Visa’s latest move marks another step toward fusing blockchain technology with traditional financial infrastructure—paving the way for faster, more inclusive digital payments on a global scale.