Global payments giant Visa has partnered with Yellow Card, a leading pan-African stablecoin infrastructure provider, to introduce cross-border stablecoin transfers across Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and key African markets where Yellow Card operates.
The partnership will allow both companies to test the integration of stablecoins into Visa Direct, a service that enables businesses to send money directly to bank accounts or card-linked wallets. With this move, businesses will be able to hold funds in stablecoins like USDC and transfer value instantly across borders — securely, transparently, and with reduced costs.
“In 2025, we believe that every institution that moves money will need a stablecoin strategy,” said Godfrey Sullivan, Visa’s SVP and Head of Product for CEMEA. “As more players explore this technology, Visa is ready to support them with the tools and experience they need to succeed.”
💸 Why It Matters: Stablecoins Meet Real-World Utility
The integration represents a major step in Visa’s ongoing plan to modernise global money movement — and is particularly relevant to Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where stablecoins have emerged as a powerful tool for businesses navigating currency instability, complex remittance corridors, and unreliable banking systems.
Between June 2022 and July 2024, the SSA region reportedly processed at least $500 billion in stablecoin remittances monthly, according to market estimates. In countries like Nigeria and Ethiopia, stablecoins like USDT and USDC have become part of daily business operations — from hedging against inflation to settling cross-border invoices.
“Traditional payment companies continue to question not ‘if’ they need a stablecoin strategy, but how quickly they can deploy one,” said Chris Maurice, CEO and co-founder of Yellow Card. “We are thrilled to partner with Visa to help realise the potential of stablecoins in emerging markets.”
🌍 Africa’s Role in the Global Stablecoin Story
Visa’s involvement adds momentum to a growing shift in global payments. The company first tested stablecoins in 2021 via a pilot with Crypto.com and USDC. Since then, it has expanded support to blockchains like Solana and enabled financial institutions to settle transactions in stablecoins — processing over $225 million in stablecoin transactions to date.
The strategic partnership with Yellow Card is more than just a tech experiment — it’s a signal that Africa’s stablecoin use cases are shaping the future of payments. In Nigeria, USDT consistently ranks among the most traded digital assets, often used as a store of value amid currency devaluation. In Ethiopia, stablecoin adoption for trade has driven a 180% increase in low-value cross-border transactions year-over-year.
🚀 Beyond Visa: A Stablecoin Surge
Visa’s move follows a broader wave of stablecoin adoption by global players. Shopify recently partnered with Circle and Coinbase to accept stablecoin payments. Stripe is testing stablecoin rails in 101 countries, while Walmart and Amazon are reportedly exploring their own platform-native stablecoins.
In Africa, the naira-backed cNGN stablecoin now circulates over ₦165.4 million and is listed on platforms like Busha and Quidax.
These developments suggest stablecoins are no longer niche crypto assets — they’re becoming critical infrastructure for modern money movement, and Africa is not only adopting the trend but actively driving its utility forward.
🧭 What’s Next?
As Visa and Yellow Card begin real-world testing of the integration across the CEMEA region, analysts say the impact could be profound: faster settlement times, lower costs, and broader inclusion for SMEs, freelancers, and informal traders who have been largely underserved by legacy banking.
If successful, the partnership could position Africa not just as a passive recipient of global fintech innovation — but as a proving ground for the next evolution of global payments.
