Partnership with huge payment platforms with cryptocurrencies is gradually becoming a trend in the financial sector. We have already seen it with PayPal when it entered the cryptocurrency market and allowed Bitcoin and crypto spending.

The same route was chosen by Visa, and this fact is indeed something worth paying our attention to. More than 60 million sellers working with the Visa payment system will be able to accept and make payments in USDC stablecoins through the Ethereum blockchain. 

Even though it was announced in December, the news is still on the headlines and a lot of people discuss this topic on various forums. According to the statement, Visa would not act as a custodian of the digital coin. As part of the partnership agreement, Circle and Visa will select credit card issuers who integrate USDC software into their platforms and begin accepting and sending payments in stablecoins. This is reported by Forbes.

Great news for traders

This news will please crypto traders. In addition to Forex trading, the latter has become a very popular activity in the crypto sector. However, the situation in the world, as well as a crisis in the United States, might become hampering for investors. You can check this link to find out more about the ongoing financial situation and indices.

Furthermore, a lot of people frequently ask the following question - what does spread mean in Forex and crypto trading? It is actually the difference between ask and bid price. The integration of the payment system through the Ethereum blockchain will be something traders will pay more attention to.

Integration and international payments

Once the integration process is complete, companies will be able to make international payments to USDC. The resulting coins can be converted into national currency and spent anywhere where Visa cards are accepted.

In the future, it is planned to issue credit cards for businesses with direct payment support in USDC.

Cuy Sheffield who is head of Visa’s cryptocurrency division noted that the company would make the world's first corporate balance card at USDC. This step should greatly enhance the usefulness for Circle's business customers.

The crypto community welcomed the news with enthusiasm. The well-known crypto-investor and founder of Mythos.Capital tweeted that Visa is beginning to gradually abandon traditional banking registries in favor of blockchain.

Visa invests in blockchain

Visa relies on investments in startups and patent development. Last year, the company invested for the first time in the Anchorage blockchain project together with other major investors. The total amount of funding was $40 million.

Founded in 2017, Anchorage is building the infrastructure for digital currencies and is also working on blockchain asset storage technology. The project team has already released several revolutionary solutions, including a privacy technology called Zether. It is used by JPMorgan in its cryptocurrency project.

Earlier, it was also reported that the head of Visa Alfred F. Kelly recognized the potential of cryptocurrencies, calling them a natural addition to fiat money. Despite the fact that he still does not consider them a full-fledged replacement for traditional currencies, the digital coins provided by the fiat, in his opinion, represent a promising innovative payment technology.

Earlier in 202, the company published an article about the place in its development plans to focus on digital money, noting that the focus is on mutually beneficial cooperation with cryptocurrency startups. Today's announcement shows that Visa's words are not at odds with the case and the company intends to actively develop in this direction.

Also, it was announced that the payment giant has issued a credit card with a cashback function in Bitcoin.

What do you need to know about USDC?

In 2018 it was announced that Coinbase and Circle have partnered to issue USDC. Taking into account that this is a new participant of the market that got support from the cryptocurrency exchange, it is necessary to say a few words about this token.

USD Coin (USDC) is a coin launched on Coinbase and created by Circle, which is pegged to fiat currency. Like Tether, it is supported by the US dollar at a ratio of 1: 1. Because the meaning of coin is to avoid the volatility that cryptocurrencies are usually supported by. 

USDC is, by its very nature, an ERC-20 token built on the Ethereum block. According to the official website, USD Coin is described as: “Stable cryptocurrency. With USDC, you can transfer your dollars to any point in the world in a matter of minutes. Cheap and safe. Tokens provide stability, open up opportunities for trade, hedging of risks, crediting. 

Circle also describes the currency in its blog: "A token with a stable price - this is an opportunity for the emergence of new powerful global financial partnerships.”