Crypto-linked cards see continued growth. More than $1 billion spent on crypto-linked Visa cards in the first half of 2021. „It’s more important than ever for financial institutions of all stripes to establish a crypto strategy,” Visa says.

Stablecoins are starting to live up to the promise of “digital fiat” – Visa says

Today the value of crypto assets held in regulated digital wallets is in the hundreds of billions. For the tens of millions of people using those platforms, one of the simplest ways to spend crypto is through a Visa card.

Visa is partnering with 50 of the leading crypto platforms on card programs that make it easy to convert and spend digital currency at 70 million merchants worldwide. „With more than $1 billion spent on crypto-linked Visa cards in the first half of 2021, it’s clear that the crypto community sees value in linking digital currencies to Visa’s global network¹,” according to a company’s blog.

What’s more, these programs don’t require coffee shops, dry cleaners, or grocery stores to directly accept cryptocurrencies at the checkout. It’s the magic of “tap and go” without the complexity of new acceptance points or cryptographic keys.

Here’s a look at the trends Visa is seeing and the progress made by the company against its digital currency roadmap.

An expanding and evolving ecosystem: We’ve been growing our relationships with today’s leading digital currency platforms — FTX, Coinbase, Crypto.com, and CoinZoom, to name a few. Today one-quarter of the companies in Visa’s Fintech Fast Track program are working to issue Visa cards linked to a crypto platform.²

These platforms are diversifying to meet an array of consumer needs, with new tools and features spanning interest accounts, lending and direct deposits. In this context, „it’s more important than ever for financial institutions of all stripes to establish a crypto strategy,” Visa says.

Rewards Reimagined: Consumers want choice in all things, and loyalty and rewards are no different. Programs like the BlockFi Rewards Visa Credit Card let users spend fiat and earn crypto rewards in a similar way other cards offer rewards programs for airline miles or hotel points.³By combining engagement in the crypto economy with the utility of a standard Visa card, these programs have potential to win long-term customer loyalty among both crypto enthusiasts and new adopters.

Stablecoins come to the fore: With more than $100 billion worth of stablecoins in circulation and hundreds of billions exchanged each month on public blockchains, stablecoins are starting to live up to the promise of “digital fiat”: the developer-friendly characteristics of cryptocurrency combined with the reliability of fiat-backed reserves.

Visa is seeing digital wallets and crypto platforms build payment products entirely with digital currency. For example, the fast-growing FTX platform, a new Fintech Fast Track member we’re announcing today, is paying fifty per-cent of their remote employees in USDC.

Visa is making its network more accessible to this growing ecosystem with capabilities like USDC settlement and through our partnership with Circle.

„As we look to the future, stablecoins are on track to become an important part of the broader digital transformation of financial services, and Visa is excited to help shape and support that development,” Visa concludes.

Interested in learning more? Check out Visa’s outlook on digital currency

¹ Visa Fintech Fast Track Participants for North America with plans to issue Visa card programs.

² Please see the BlockFi Rewards Program and Crypto Rewards Account Terms for more information.

³ Cumulative payment volume for Visa card programs linked to a digital currency platform, January 2021 – June 2021