Western Union's Stablecard combines a USDPT wallet and Visa card in 37 markets. The product targets countries with volatile currencies, with plans to reach 60 markets by year-end.
Western Union on Tuesday began offering a Visa card linked to a stablecoin wallet, the company said. The product, called Stablecard, allows users to hold USDPT – a dollar-pegged token issued by Anchorage Digital on Solana – and spend at any Visa merchant. The launch covers 37 markets, with plans to reach 60 by year-end.
The card combines a digital wallet with a Visa secured credit card. Users receive and store funds in USDPT, then spend at any Visa merchant or ATM. The mobile app is available on Apple's App Store and Google Play.
Western Union CEO Devin McGranahan said the product combines the stability of a dollar-backed digital asset with the company's global network and Visa's acceptance footprint. "We're giving consumers a new way to hold value, move money and spend confidently across borders," he said in the release.
Rain CEO Farooq Malik said the enterprise infrastructure underneath the wallet and card makes stablecoin efficiency accessible to people who have never thought about on-chain money. "Users enjoy a modern experience that just works with all of the compliance and protections built in," Malik said.
The 37 launch markets include countries where local currencies frequently depreciate against the dollar. Western Union did not name the specific countries. The company said the markets are where there is already demand for stablecoins. The company's traditional remittance business has faced pressure from digital rivals. Stablecoin-based products offer a way to keep customers within its ecosystem while reducing reliance on correspondent banking networks.
Rain raised $250 million in a Series C funding round in January to scale its stablecoin payment infrastructure. In May, the company joined Visa's pilot program for stablecoin settlement. Rain said it tokenizes its credit card receivables and settles all Visa card transactions in USDC, enabling settlement seven days a week, 365 days a year.
Malik told PYMNTS in September that the core unlock of stablecoins is merging money movement and reconciliation into a single digital packet. The Stablecard product applies that logic to a familiar form factor: a Visa card backed by a stablecoin wallet.
The choice of USDPT, a stablecoin issued by Anchorage Digital on Solana, reflects a preference for fast, low-cost blockchain settlement. Solana processes thousands of transactions per second at fractions of a cent. Western Union said in April, when it was preparing to launch USDPT, that the stablecoin would serve as a bridge between fiat and crypto for unbanked populations and provide 24/7 availability.
Visa processes more than $12 trillion in transactions annually. Adding stablecoin-backed cards to that network means consumers can spend digital dollars at any of the roughly 100 million merchant locations that accept Visa. The card network has been experimenting with stablecoin settlement for years. A branded product from Western Union, one of the largest money-transfer companies in the world, represents a step toward mass adoption.
Western Union's existing regulatory licenses and compliance infrastructure give it an advantage over pure-play crypto companies that struggle to get banking partners. The company has operated under money transmitter licenses in dozens of jurisdictions for decades. Its physical and digital presence gives the Stablecard access to customers who might not seek out a crypto wallet. Rain's enterprise infrastructure handles compliance, anti-money laundering checks, and wallet management behind the scenes.
Western Union executives said on a July 30 earnings call that the company is sharpening its focus on digital and artificial intelligence. The Stablecard launch aligns with that strategy, offering a digital-first product that uses blockchain rails without requiring customers to understand the underlying technology.
Anchorage Digital, the issuer of USDPT, holds a federal trust charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, adding a layer of regulatory credibility. Rain's $250 million Series C, led by Paradigm and others, valued the company at over $2 billion.
The stablecoin payments sector is still small relative to traditional card volumes. It is growing. Total stablecoin transaction volume exceeded $15 trillion in 2024, much of it on-chain settlement between exchanges. Consumer-facing products like the Stablecard aim to capture a slice of everyday spending. Western Union plans to offer Stablecard in more than 60 markets by the end of the year.
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