Visa Ventures has provided financial support to BVNK, which is the latest initiative by the payments behemoth to incorporate stablecoin technology into its global network
Visa has made a strategic investment in BVNK, a provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, thereby intensifying the traditional payments giant’s pursuit of blockchain-based settlement technologies.
BVNK CEO Jesse Hemson-Struthers disclosed the investment on Tuesday, which was executed through Visa Ventures.
Although the financial terms were not disclosed, the action follows BVNK’s $50 million Series B round in December 2024, which was led by Haun Ventures and included support from Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, DRW Venture Capital, Avenir, and Tiger Global.
Hemson-Struthers characterized the partnership as “more than capital,” stating that it is a “powerful validation of our vision to upgrade global payments with stablecoin technology.”
BVNK and Visa were contacted by Crypto.news on multiple occasions; however, neither responded by the time of publication.
Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s head of growth products and partnerships, stated in the announcement that stablecoins are rapidly becoming a component of global payment flows.
Visa is committed to investing in new technologies and builders such as BVNK to remain at the forefront of next-generation commerce in order to better serve our clients and partners.
BVNK asserts that it has developed its platform from the ground up to accommodate automated, high-volume transactions and processes $12 billion in annualized stablecoin payment volume.
The organization presents its service as an alternative to the conventional correspondent banking system, which it asserts is insufficiently efficient and costly for the majority of contemporary business requirements.
“At BVNK, we recognized early that stablecoins would emerge as an instant global payment rail and a viable alternative to the traditional correspondent banking system. That’s why we’ve built our infrastructure from the ground up to automate and orchestrate stablecoin payments at scale, making these new rails accessible to businesses of all sizes.” – Hemson-Struthers
In pursuit of stability
The Visa investment is made at a time when the stablecoin sector is exhibiting indications of increased institutional interest.
Visa collaborated with the Bridge startup, which was acquired by Stripe in late April, to facilitate the issuance of Visa cards that are directly reliant on stablecoin balances by fintech companies.
The new product, which will be initially introduced in six Latin American countries, enables users to finance cards with stablecoins, which are subsequently converted to local fiat at the point of sale.
Merchants are not subject to the volatility of cryptocurrency, as they receive payments in their native currencies.
Zach Abrams, CEO of Bridge, characterized the collaboration as a “massive unlock for developers,” stating that “everyone will be able to use stablecoins with just a tap.”
Jack Forestell, Visa’s chief product and strategy officer, underscored the organization’s objective to “securely integrate stablecoins into its global network,” thereby providing consumers and developers with additional financial alternatives.
In this broader strategic orientation, it appears that BVNK is involved. The company acknowledged in its announcement that its stablecoin rails have the potential to revolutionize the way businesses operate in the digital economy, particularly in regions with limited access to efficient cross-border banking..
Additionally, the organization has been expanding its operations in the United States, establishing offices in New York and San Francisco earlier this year.
Amit Cheela, a former executive of BlockFi, and Keith Vander Leest, a former executive of Cross River, are currently overseeing the company’s operations in the United States.
“Trillion-dollar opportunity”
In recent quarters, there has been a significant increase in the volume of stablecoin payments. Visa’s Onchain Analytics platform reports $33.4 trillion in global stablecoin volume across 5.5 billion transactions, suggesting that the platform is gaining traction beyond trading use cases.
Citi Wealth also observed that stablecoins “could end up reinforcing the U.S. dollar’s dominance,” particularly as stablecoin infrastructure scales globally.
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Haseeb Qureshi, the managing partner of Dragonfly Capital, has previously predicted that stablecoins could reach a critical juncture in 2025.
He believes that they could transition from speculative crypto trading to real-world payments and settlement, becoming essential tools for small and medium-sized businesses.
“Stablecoin usage will explode, particularly among SMBs. Not just trading and speculation — real businesses will start using on-chain dollars for instant settlement.” – Qureshi
Additionally, he stated that stablecoins would surpass conventional systems in terms of efficiency and accessibility, particularly as regulatory clarity increases.
Pantera Capital, an additional prominent crypto venture firm, has referred to stablecoins as a “trillion-dollar opportunity,” noting that they now constitute over 50% of blockchain transaction activity, as opposed to only 3% in 2020.
The Visa agreement is also a significant reputational milestone for BVNK. Hemson-Struthers characterized it as a return to the fundamental principles of payments innovation.
“I’m particularly excited about what it means to partner with Visa—the original payments innovator,” he said, adding that Visa’s expertise in building global payment networks, combined with BVNK’s stablecoin infrastructure, would create “powerful possibilities.”
