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Visa announced on the 27th that it has expanded its stablecoin-based settlement capabilities across Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) through a partnership with digital asset infrastructure provider Aquanow.
LATEST: ⚡️ Visa has partnered with crypto infrastructure company Aquanow to expand stablecoin settlement across Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, aiming to reduce cross-border payment costs and enable 24/7 settlement. pic.twitter.com/JkDS2fBBzI
— CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) November 28, 2025
The collaboration will allow issuers and acquirers within Visa’s network to settle payments using stablecoins such as USDC, leveraging Aquanow’s infrastructure. The move reflects growing institutional demand for more transparent, programmable, and efficient settlement solutions.
Cutting Cross-Border Settlement From Days to Seconds
Traditional international payments often require multiple intermediaries, resulting in settlement times of five to seven business days. Visa’s upgraded system aims to eliminate this bottleneck by enabling near-instant settlement using approved stablecoins.
By incorporating USDC and other regulated cryptocurrencies, Visa expects to reduce costs, streamline operations, and enable 24/7/365 settlement, removing dependency on traditional banking hours.
Godfrey Sullivan, Visa’s Head of Product for the CEMEA region, stated that combining the “power of stablecoins with Visa’s trusted technology” will deliver a faster and simpler settlement experience for financial institutions.
As blockchain infrastructure continues to mature, Visa says the network is now capable of supporting high-volume commercial transactions.
Broader Market Reach Through the Aquanow Partnership
Visa began testing stablecoin settlements in 2023 and has since accelerated real-world implementations, including deployments on high-performance blockchains such as Solana (SOL) to increase settlement throughput.
Today, Visa’s stablecoin-enabled settlement volume has surpassed USD 2.5 billion annually, indicating growing commercial usage. Aquanow CEO Phil Sham said the collaboration will help institutional clients conduct settlements “with the speed and transparency of the internet.”
Founded in 2018, Aquanow now serves more than 300 clients across 50+ countries and has emerged as a key provider of digital asset liquidity and infrastructure.
Industry analysts expect the expanded partnership to stimulate broader adoption of blockchain-based financial services, contributing to the growth of the digital asset market, including Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies.
