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VISA Completes First Cryptocurrency Transaction on Ethereum

Posted by Andries Van Tonder on March 29, 2021 - 12:40pm

VISA Completes First Cryptocurrency Transaction on Ethereum

Visa has announced that it will allow transactions to be settled using the cryptocurrency stablecoin USD Coin.

By Scott Chipolina

In brief

  • Visa has announced support for USD Coin to be used to settle transactions on its payments network.
  • The announcement is part of a wider pivot to the crypto industry for the payments giant.

Visa has announced today that it will allow the use of the USD Coin cryptocurrency to settle transactions on its payments network, per Reuters. In a trial conducted earlier this month, Crypto.com sent a USDC transaction to Visa's Ethereum address at crypto custody service Anchorage.

Per today's announcement, Visa's use of the Ethereum blockchain removes the need to convert digital coins into traditional money before the transaction can take place—removing pre-existing complexities for businesses.

The USD Coin is a stablecoin—a crypto asset that is pegged to the US Dollar.

The move comes at a time when major institutions like BNY Mellon, MicroStrategy, and PayPal have all embraced the crypto industry. Earlier this month, Tesla invested a whopping $1.5 billion into Bitcoin, signalling just how appealing the crypto industry is proving to be to large investors.

“We see increasing demand from consumers across the world to be able to access, hold and use digital currencies and we’re seeing demand from our clients to be able to build products that provide that access for consumers,” said Cuy Sheffield, head of crypto at Visa.

Part of that increasing demand is taking place in Latin America, where consumers want access to cryptocurrencies not just as a hedge against inflating national currencies, but as a means for spending. According to a Visa survey conducted last month, 25% of all credit card users in Latin America would like to experiment with cryptocurrencies if payment processors gave them that opportunity.

But Visa's pivot into the crypto industry doesn't stop there. According to CEO Al Kelly, Visa is also looking to "enable the purchase of Bitcoin on Visa credentials."

Mihai Cristian Thanks for sharing
March 29, 2021 at 3:56pm
Bill Rippel Just one more of the Big Boys getting involved with Cryptos. They will all get involved eventually.
March 29, 2021 at 2:59pm
Andries Van Tonder Thank you Simon
March 29, 2021 at 1:21pm
Simon Keighley Visa offering cryptocurrency transactions is significant news for the crypto space, Andries - thanks for sharing.
March 29, 2021 at 1:12pm