Circle’s new Arc blockchain testnet launches with participation from more than 100 institutions, including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Visa and Mastercard. Circle, the world’s second-largest stablecoin issuer, launched the public testnet for Arc, its open layer-1 blockchain network built to bring global financial infrastructure onchain. The rollout, which Circle calls the “Economic Operating System for the internet,” includes participation from over 100 major companies spanning banking, capital markets and fintech — among them BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Visa, Mastercard and State Street, according to a Tuesday announcement. “With Arc’s public testnet, we’re seeing remarkable early momentum as leading companies, protocols, and projects begin to build and test,” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said. “Combined, these companies reach billions of users, move, exchange, and custody hundreds of trillions in assets and payments,” he added. Read more
Visa, Mastercard, tech firms and banking institutions are all exploring ways of using blockchain technology for payments and settlement. Payment company Visa expanded stablecoin offerings on its settlement platform by adding support for Global Dollar (USDG), PayPal USD (PYUSD), Euro Coin (EURC) and two new blockchain networks, Stellar and Avalanche. The integration allows users to send and receive stablecoin payments through the supported blockchain networks or convert their balances to traditional fiat currency, Visa said in a press release on Thursday. Visa already offered support to Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin, while supported networks for transfer and settlement include Ethereum, Solana and the newly added chains. Read more
Yellow Card plans to roll out stablecoin payments with Visa in at least one African country this year amid a trend driven partly by limited access to US dollars. Credit card giant Visa has partnered with Yellow Card Financial, an African stablecoin payments provider, to accelerate the adoption of digital dollars across the continent, underscoring the growing synergy between traditional payment networks and cryptocurrency solutions. The two companies have signed an agreement to promote stablecoin use for cross-border payments in emerging markets where Yellow Card operates, Bloomberg reported Thursday. Yellow Card will launch stablecoin transactions with Visa in at least one African country this year, with additional rollouts expected in 2026. Chris Maurice, co-founder and CEO of Yellow Card, said the collaboration will focus on enhancing treasury operations, improving liquidity management and enabling more cost-effective money transfers. Read more
Nikola Plecas joins TON Foundation to lead its global payments strategy as the network scales for Telegram’s massive user base. The Open Network Foundation (TON Foundation) appointed former Visa executive Nikola Plecas as its new vice president of payments. Plecas will be responsible for shaping and executing TON’s payment infrastructure strategy, the company said in a May 28 blog post. He is tasked with expanding the network’s capabilities, managing financial partnerships and ensuring compliance across jurisdictions as the foundation scales services for over 1 billion Telegram users. Read more
Visa invests in London-based stablecoin payment startup BVNK through its Visa Ventures arm, marking another step in its growing involvement in crypto. Payments behemoth Visa has invested in BVNK, a London-based startup focused on stablecoin payment infrastructure, signaling continued interest in digital asset innovation. According to a May 7 BVNK announcement, the startup “secured a strategic investment from Visa through their Visa Ventures arm.” Furthermore, while the company does not explain fully what it entails, it refers to the investment as “more than capital” and describes it as a partnership. The company’s CEO, Jesse Hemson-Struthers, wrote: Rubail Birwadker, head of products and partnerships at Visa, explained that “stablecoins are fast becoming a part of global payment flows.” He said that Visa invests in new technologies and builders, such as BVNK, who are involved in “what’s next in commerce to better serve our clients and partners.” Read more
Telcell CJSC and Armeconombank (AEB) users can order and receive a Visa digital co-branded card for free as part of joint cooperation. The strategic cooperation between the parties aims to develop innovative technologies in the fintech sector. In the first stage of collaboration, with the support of AEB, the Telcell Wallet application users will be able to create a bank account and replenish their wallets. Artyom Baghdasaryan Head of Cards Department of “Armeconombank” noted: “Armeconombank’s cooperation with Telcell CJSC has a long-term mutually beneficial nature. Based on the successful experience of collaboration and aiming to make banking services available to users of the Telcell Wallet application, the idea of a co-brand card was born, the platform of which will be the basis for the introduction and development of other financial services (for example, credit products, access to new solutions for transfers, etc.) Arman Grigoryan, head of the Telcell CJSC Financial Partnership Department of CJSC, noted t...