Visa Invests in BVNK to Expand Stablecoin Payments in U.S.

BVNK, a prominent stablecoin payment infrastructure provider, has secured a strategic investment from Visa through its Visa Ventures arm. This investment marks a significant milestone for both companies as they expand their operations into the U.S. market. BVNK's infrastructure is designed to facilitate scalable, automated stablecoin payments, providing businesses with an efficient alternative to traditional banking systems. The company has already processed over $12 billion annually for clients such as Ferrari and Rapyd, helping them send, receive, convert, and store stablecoins and fiat currencies.

Visa's interest in BVNK is part of its broader strategy to integrate cryptocurrency solutions into its vast global network, which includes 4.8 billion cards, 150 million merchants, and 14,500 financial institutions. This investment follows a successful $50 million Series B funding round in December 2024, led by Haun Ventures with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, DRW Venture Capital, Avenir, and Tiger Global. Jesse Hemson Struthers, CEO and co-founder of BVNK, highlighted the potential of this partnership, stating, “Visa’s expertise in global payment networks, combined with our stablecoin infrastructure, offers powerful possibilities for redefining how businesses operate in today’s digital economy.”

BVNK's expansion into the U.S. market is driven by a team of industry veterans and includes the opening of new offices in San Francisco and New York. The company is also ramping up efforts to offer its infrastructure to businesses, recently launching Layer1, a digital asset payments platform described as a “hyper-optimized, stablecoin core banking stack.” This product provides a ready-to-use foundation for companies to build their stablecoin-based solutions. Additionally, BVNK has unveiled embedded wallets pre-equipped with stablecoin functionality, aligning with Visa’s growing interest in supporting the broader stablecoin ecosystem.

Stablecoins have seen substantial growth, with their transfer volume outpacing that of Visa and Mastercard combined. Annual stablecoin transfers reached $27.6 trillion, driven by the adoption of platforms like Solana and Base. Tether (USDT), which remains dominant, accounted for nearly 80% of the trading volume. This partnership positions Visa at the competitive forefront among players, bridging traditional finance with scalable crypto payment infrastructure. BVNK’s U.S. expansion and $12 billion annual processing volume demonstrate the rapid business adoption of stablecoin rails, validating the vision to streamline global transactions with stablecoin payments.