Summary
Visa is reportedly seeking a new stablecoin settlement and over-the-counter (OTC) partner after Mastercard acquired BVNK, which previously filled that role, according to documents seen by CoinDesk. The confidential RFP seeks a provider with cryptocurrency exchange licenses in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Singapore, able to swap and support a range of stablecoins and handle settlement for the newly introduced Open USD project (fronted by Stripe, Visa and Mastercard). The search highlights the intensifying stablecoin competition between Visa and Mastercard as both card networks race to own the settlement layer.
Key Facts
- Visa looking for a settlement + OTC partner with crypto-exchange licenses in US, Canada, UK and Singapore
- Must handle swaps across multiple stablecoins and settlement for Open USD (OUSD)
- Mastercard completed its BVNK acquisition Aug 3 (announced March, up to $1.8B); BVNK had been Visa's stablecoin settlement partner
- BVNK processed ~$30B annual payment volume; was engaged by Visa Direct for stablecoin payouts/prefunding
- Visa separately partnered with ZeroHash (Aug 5) for Visa Direct clients to fund/payout with stablecoins
- Visa Stablecoin Platform (VSP) launched last month; Open USD is its initial supported token; in beta with select clients
- Open USD: consortium of 140+ firms (Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, BlackRock, Coinbase); zero mint/redeem fees, returns reserve income to partners
- Visa is multi-coin/multi-chain; CEO Ryan McInerney says "our role is not to pick winners"
- Stablecoin total market cap ~$300B (CoinGecko)
- No public deadline for partner selection; Visa has not confirmed the RFP
Why It Matters
Visa's hunt for a new stablecoin settlement partner shows how the race to own the stablecoin layer is reshaping the card networks' infrastructure. Mastercard's BVNK acquisition left Visa to rebuild its stablecoin settlement/OTC capacity, and the multi-market licensing requirement (US/CA/UK/SG) narrows the field to a few institutional infrastructure providers. Combined with the Open USD project and the Visa Stablecoin Platform, it signals that both Visa and Mastercard now treat stablecoins as core to their future — a competitive shift with major implications for the payments and stablecoin ecosystem.