Nium Joins Visa’s Stablecoin Settlement Pilot to Power Real-Time Cross-Border Payments

Quick Breakdown

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  Nium joins Visa’s stablecoin settlement pilot to enhance cross-border payments.
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  Will use USDC and blockchain rails to enable faster and cheaper settlements.
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  Strengthens Visa’s push toward real-time, crypto-enabled global commerce.

Singapore-based global payments infrastructure provider Nium has joined Visa’s stablecoin settlement pilot, marking a major step toward integrating blockchain-based settlement into enterprise-grade cross-border payments. The collaboration will enable Nium to settle transactions using Circle’s USDC and other supported stablecoins across select blockchains.

Blockchain Settlement for Global Transactions

The move positions Nium among a select group of payment providers leveraging Visa’s blockchain settlement infrastructure to enhance speed, transparency, and cost efficiency in global money movement. By utilizing stablecoins as a settlement rail, Nium aims to replace legacy batch-based systems with real-time blockchain settlements, thereby significantly reducing the friction associated with traditional clearing cycles.

The partnership also addresses persistent challenges in cross-border payments — including weekend settlement delays, time zone mismatches, and reconciliation bottlenecks. With blockchain-enabled settlement, Nium can process payments seven days a week, aligning financial flows with the always-on nature of global commerce.

Alex Johnson, Chief Payments Officer at Nium, said the initiative represents “a new chapter for enterprise-grade money movement,” emphasizing that the pilot aligns transaction speeds with the pace of digital business rather than outdated financial infrastructure.

Expanding Visa’s Stablecoin Ecosystem

Visa’s Head of Digital Currencies for Asia Pacific, Nischint Sanghavi, noted that stablecoins are becoming a cornerstone of modern money movement. “Our pilot aims to offer predictable settlement capabilities up to seven days a week,” he said, underscoring Visa’s ambition to support continuous global commerce through blockchain innovation.

Nium will integrate the stablecoin settlement framework into its existing real-time payments infrastructure, enabling fintechs and enterprises to access blockchain-powered settlement rails without the need to build their own systems.

The partnership builds on Visa and Nium’s multi-year collaboration focused on modernizing global financial infrastructure — marking another milestone in the convergence of traditional finance and digital assets.

Meanwhile, Visa plans to extend its stablecoin infrastructure for banks and financial institutions. McInerney said the company will focus on cross-border settlements, enabling faster and more cost-efficient global payments through stablecoins.