What’s happening

Global payment-giant Visa Inc. has announced a major upgrade to its crypto and blockchain payments infrastructure. The company is now set to support four different stablecoins running on four separate blockchains. These tokens will be convertible into over 25 traditional fiat currencies as part of Visa’s broader push into digital assets.

Beyond this, Visa has launched a pilot through its Visa Direct platform that allows businesses to prefund cross-border payments using stablecoins, instead of holding large amounts of cash in foreign bank accounts.

According to the company’s own data: since 2020 Visa has processed over USD 140 billion in crypto and stablecoin flows.

Also notable: via commentary from investment bank Mizuho Securities, Visa is described as becoming the “stablecoin of stablecoins” i.e., not just a card-network, but the infrastructure layer linking many tokens and many chains.

Why this matters for Africa/East Africa

For readers in Uganda, East Africa and the broader African continent, this is a meaningful development. Here’s why:

1. Lower cost, faster cross-border flows. One of the biggest barriers in Africa is high cost plus slow settlement for cross-border payments (remittances, trade-payments, fintech payouts). By allowing stablecoins to be used for prefunding and quick settlement, Visa’s model could reduce the time and cost of moving money across borders.
2. Leap-frogging legacy infrastructure. Much of Africa’s payment rails are still catching up. When a global heavyweight like Visa links stablecoins + blockchain rails + traditional fiat conversion, local players have an opportunity to plug in rather than build from scratch.
3. Dollar-pegged value accessible. Stablecoins (which are cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat currency) help users access stable value, which is significant in regions with volatile currencies or limited access to global fiat rails. This may boost inclusion of underserved populations.
4. Fintech & remittance innovation potential. Fintech firms in East Africa could partner with networks like Visa, or leverage this stablecoin infrastructure, to build novel cross-border payout, B2B trade, gig-economy payout, or remittance products.
5. Regulation & on-ramp/off-ramp still key. The infrastructure may be global, but for real-world uptake in Uganda/East Africa, local regulatory clarity, bank & fintech partnerships, and reliable on-ramps/off-ramps (crypto ↔ fiat) will matter. Without that, the rail exists but local access may lag.

What it means for the future of crypto payments

1. Stablecoins move from “niche” to infrastructure. Until recently, stablecoins were mostly used within crypto-markets. With Visa treating them as settlement/funding rails, they are becoming part of mainstream money-movement.
2. Multi-chain, token-agnostic future. Visa’s support of multiple chains and tokens signals that the future of payments might not be one blockchain dominating, but interoperable networks linked via global rails.
3. Payment networks upgrade, not replace. Importantly, Visa is not trying to fully replace its card/network business; rather it is integrating stablecoins into its network. For crypto payments that means a bridging of traditional finance + digital-assets, instead of “crypto vs bank”. This may ease adoption, especially in regulated environments.
4. Emerging markets as opportunity hotspots. Visa’s CEO has indicated that the growth opportunity for stablecoin-enabled rails lies especially in under-penetrated markets (i.e., many parts of Africa) where cross-border flows, digital-payments needs and currency-volatility intersect.
5. New value chain winners. As Mizuho pointed out, if tokens become commoditised, network infrastructure (Visa-type players) could capture much of the value. That suggests crypto-payments business models may shift: success may stem not just from issuing tokens, but from building rails and integration.

Key things for African/UG developers, fintechs and readers to watch

1. Which stablecoins and which blockchains Visa actually supports locally. The announcement didn’t name them all.
2. Whether local/regional stablecoins pegged to local currencies or dollar-stablecoins get integration into global rails. For example, could East-African-dollar-pegged tokens plug into Visa’s network?
3. How regulators in Uganda & East Africa respond. For this rail to be usable locally, issues like licensing, digital-asset custody, AML/KYC, and fiat off-ramps matter.
4. How fintechs and banks local to Africa leverage this: Will we see Visa-partnered remittance/fintech apps in Uganda using stable-coin prefunding?
5. User experience & pricing: Will stablecoin-enabled payments produce tangible cost/time benefits for remittances, payouts, trade for local users?
6. Infrastructure readiness: Wallets, crypto-fiat gateways, local currency conversion, blockchain connectivity and local bank partnerships.

A quick summary.

This isn’t just hype a major global payments player is explicitly building stablecoin-based rails for cross-border and emerging-market payments. For Uganda and East Africa, if local players engage proactively, the region could benefit from faster, cheaper, and more inclusive payment flows. But the rails alone aren’t enough: local regulation, ecosystem readiness, fintech innovation, and user access will determine whether this becomes reality rather than concept. From the Cryptolised perspective, this is a vivid example of how crypto is evolving from speculation to infrastructure — and why understanding stablecoins, rails, interoperability and regulatory context is critical.