Visa and Bridge Launch Stablecoin-Linked Cards Across Latin America

Visa is teaming up with stablecoin infrastructure provider Bridge to roll out a new product that will allow consumers to use stablecoins for everyday purchases via Visa cards. The initiative is launching first in multiple Latin American countries and aims to bridge the gap between cryptocurrency and traditional retail transactions by enabling users to spend crypto tokens directly at any merchant that accepts Visa.

The introduction of these stablecoin-linked cards comes at a time when momentum is building in the U.S. Congress to pass legislation regulating stablecoins for the first time. Such a regulatory framework could potentially open the door for a wider range of financial institutions to either adopt or issue stablecoins themselves. Stablecoins—cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar—are already commonly used by traders as a way to move funds quickly between crypto tokens. However, despite their efficiency, using them for routine consumer purchases remains difficult because most merchants do not accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment.

Bridge, which was recently acquired by Stripe, will handle the backend of transactions for the new Visa cards. When customers make purchases with the card, Bridge will deduct the amount from the user's stablecoin balance and convert the funds into the local currency used by the merchant. This seamless conversion is designed to make crypto spending as frictionless as using a traditional debit or credit card.

As part of the partnership, developers working on Bridge's infrastructure will also be able to issue stablecoin-linked Visa cards within their own products. The program is set to launch in Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Chile, with future expansion plans already underway. Visa and Bridge have indicated that the service will become available in Europe, Africa, and Asia in the coming months.

“We feel like the moment is now to take some of the things that we’ve already been doing in a more experimental, pilot basis and start to expose them to the world as capabilities that we anticipate will really start to become big and meaningful and globally scalable,” said Jack Forestell, Visa’s chief product and strategy officer.

Bridge CEO Zach Abrams emphasized the importance of integration with existing financial systems to make stablecoins viable for mass adoption. “This enables folks to use and take advantage of the benefits of stablecoins wherever they are in the world, but remain wholly connected with the financial tools that folks use,” he said.

By fLEXI tEAM