Mastercard and Visa are extending stablecoin technology into the systems that settle card payments between financial institutions, while leaving the consumer checkout experience largely unchanged. Mastercard completed its acquisition of stablecoin infrastructure provider BVNK in August 2026 and has expanded its network’s settlement options to include regulated stablecoins. Visa, meanwhile, is working with Stripe-owned Bridge and Lead Bank on on-chain settlement for card programs. The shift became more concrete in September, when SoFi Bank moved its credit and debit card issuing portfolio to live settlement using its bank-issued SoFiUSD. That portfolio represents more than $25 billion in annualized card volume, a measure distinct from the value settled in stablecoins. Visa separately reported an annualized stablecoin settlement run rate exceeding $25 billion in October. The networks’ initiatives target the back-end movement and reconciliation of funds, including periods when traditional bank settlement rails are unavailable; they do not require merchants to accept cryptocurrency.

Mastercard has launched the Global Money Platform, bringing fiat and stablecoin accounts together with local bank payouts and card spending through a single modular API. The launch is the first major commercial product integration following Mastercard’s acquisition of London-based BVNK, completed in August 2026 for up to $1.8 billion. The platform connects to Mastercard Move, allowing stablecoin balances to fund payouts to local bank accounts across a network spanning more than 17 billion endpoints. Connected card-issuing capabilities are supported in more than 130 countries. Nuvei, Marqeta, Ontop, Bolt Group and Almond FinTech had begun integrating with the platform as of October 15, 2026. Mastercard plans to expand local-currency payout coverage to more than 40 currencies across over 200 countries and territories in 2027. Businesses can also use the platform for treasury management, settlements and cross-border liquidity. The launch comes as Visa advances its own stablecoin capabilities.