Visa Expands Stablecoin Settlement with Bridge as SoFiUSD Enters Mastercard Network
Hey FinTech Fanatic!
Today, the conversations keep circling one topic… stablecoins.
Visa is expanding its partnership with Bridge to bring stablecoin-linked cards to more than 100 countries by the end of this year.
The program is already live in 18. Bridge enables FinTechs to issue stablecoin-backed Visa cards usable across Visa’s 175M+ merchant locations.
Behind the scenes, issuers in Visa’s stablecoin settlement pilot can now settle transactions on-chain through Bridge’s partnership with Lead Bank.
Visa says the focus is on settlement optionality, operational efficiency, and simplifying blockchain access for institutions.
And that wasn’t the only headline...
SoFi and Mastercard Enable SoFiUSD Settlement
SoFi and Mastercard announced that SoFiUSD will be enabled as a settlement option across Mastercard’s global payments network.
SoFi Bank is expected to settle credit and debit transactions in SoFiUSD. Galileo is expected to offer issuing banks the option to settle in the stablecoin. Mastercard’s Multi-Token Network is also expected to support SoFiUSD.
Two major card networks. Two stablecoin settlement integrations.
The question now is not whether stablecoins connect to global card infrastructure…
It’s how fast this moves from pilot to default.
How about checking out all of today’s industry news? Scroll down and take a look. I’ll be back tomorrow with all the latest news.
Cheers,
INSIGHTS
🌎 +70% Onboarding Conversion and Zero Fraud: How a Top LatAm Bank Dismantled Mule Account Farms by Incognia. The bank processes high volumes of daily transactions and account openings and aims to modernize its security infrastructure to preserve its digital leadership continually. Its primary goal is to enhance risk-detection accuracy. Read the full article here
FINTECH NEWS
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🎤 In a new episode of Passionate About Payments by CompoSecure, the conversation explores how banks can stay relevant in an increasingly unbundled financial landscape, highlighting the payment card’s enduring role as an emotional anchor for customers and examining how technologies like stablecoins and AI are reshaping consumer expectations.
🇺🇸 Eltropy launches industry’s first agentic AI platform for Credit Unions. The platform enables AI agents to be securely created, governed, and deployed within the credit union ecosystem, connecting credit unions, FinTech developers, and core system providers in a unified environment. Built on its Safe AI Framework, the platform emphasizes transparency, strict access controls, and adherence.
🇺🇸 Klarna expands further into agentic commerce, offering flexible payments to merchants via Stripe's shared payment tokens, making Klarna available in AI-powered checkout flows for US merchants already live with Klarna through Stripe, provided AI shopping agents allow the ability to offer flexible payments at checkout.
🇧🇪 Wero announces the launch of its e-commerce solution in Belgium and announces the first merchants. The European Payments Initiative (EPI) has launched Wero as an e-commerce payment solution in Belgium, enabling its 50+ million users to pay online at participating merchants, including Ahold Delhaize and Veepee.
🇦🇺 Lessn exceeds $100 million in turnover on its payments orchestration platform. The platform’s accounts payable technology links to medium to large owner-operators businesses’ accounting systems, typically Xero or MYOB, with funding sources such as rewards cards and bank-to-bank.
🇺🇸 Cork FinTech SmartOffice enters the US market. Through the exclusive agreement, SmartOffice will deliver its automated invoice capture, supplier statement reconciliation, and overcharge detection technology to Pine Services Group’s US customer base.
PAYMENTS NEWS
🇧🇩 Prime NOW and Mastercard launch numberless debit cards in Bangladesh. The Prime NOW Mastercard debit card does not display the card number, CVV, or expiry date on the physical card, reducing the risk of sensitive information being copied, skimmed, or visually captured. The card is designed to help prevent over-the-shoulder theft and common fraud attempts.
🇺🇸 Stripe wants to turn your AI costs into a profit center. Stripe released a preview of a new feature that could help AI startups and other companies pass the underlying costs of AI model usage through to their customers. Read more
🇺🇸 SoftBank’s PayPay delays start of US IPO marketing. The delay occurred after markets were shaken by airstrikes on Iran and the retaliation against other countries in the region. PayPay was seeking a valuation of more than $10 billion for its IPO.
🇲🇿 Bank of Mozambique launches Instant Payment System, which is aimed at making the transfer of money faster, more efficient, and immediate via digital means. SPIM integrates commercial banks and mobile wallet services (M-PESA, E-MOLA, and m-Kesh) into a single platform that allows real-time transfers.
DIGITAL BANKING NEWS
🇨🇴 Neobank Revolut has opened a waiting list for customers and already has an app in Colombia. The European FinTech company has activated a pre-access mechanism on its local website that will allow Colombians to be notified when it begins formal operations in the country. The move confirms that it is already in an advanced stage of preparation, while the process to begin full operations in the country is being finalized.
🇧🇷 Revolut launches ULTRA plan in Brazil with 1:1 parity to Iberia, TAP, and other airlines. The expectation is that the team will adopt an aggressive stance, especially in accumulating points and transferring to international programs. Additionally, Revolut takes on Amex with an ultra-premium business card. The Titan Visa card aims to eliminate this friction by offering comprehensive expense management and real-time analytics.
🇭🇰 PAObank unveils new wealth service. This service empowers customers to flexibly switch between investing and earning interest, offering unmatched flexibility and control over their finances. Also, customers can flexibly allocate funds and trade a wide range of products, including U.S. stocks, Hong Kong stocks, funds, and money market funds, at any time.
BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS
🇩🇪 BitGo Europe GmbH launches crypto-as-a-service across the EEA for EU FinTechs and banks. CaaS is expanding into Europe to support FinTechs and banks through BitGo Europe GmbH’s MiCAR licensing framework, enabling businesses to bring compliant crypto products to market using BitGo’s modular APIs and webhooks.
🇧🇷 Brazil's central bank orders daily crypto exchange asset proof by 2027. New rules mandate full segregation of client and platform assets, plus on‑balance‑sheet recognition of crypto under a dedicated accounting manual. Continue reading
🇺🇸 Ripple Payments expands into a unified fiat and stablecoin money platform. The update adds managed custody, unified collections, and advanced liquidity services for enterprise users. The move targets financial institutions racing to deploy stablecoin payment infrastructure.
PARTNERSHIPS
🇨🇦 Rogers Bank introduces Canada’s first-ever World Legend Mastercard. The Rogers Red World Legend Mastercard offers a premium rewards package combining connectivity, travel, entertainment, and dining benefits. Cardholders receive 3% cash back when redeeming for Rogers products and services.
🇺🇸 SoFi and Mastercard partner to enable SoFiUSD settlement across Mastercard’s global payments network. Together, the companies will explore how issuers and acquirers can settle card-based transactions with Mastercard using SoFiUSD, enabling fast settlement options for Mastercard customers and unlocking faster money movement.
🇬🇧 CellPoint Digital and PayPal partner to expand payment choice and flexibility for global travel and retail brands. The collaboration supports merchants with greater agility, allowing them to embed PayPal's payment options, including PayPal wallet experiences and Buy Now, Pay Later solutions.
🇦🇺 Essendon secures Airwallex as co-major partner in landmark multi-year deal. The agreement will see the Airwallex logo take a prominent position on the front of the Bombers’ iconic red and black AFL playing and training guernseys. The partnership includes a deep integration of Airwallex’s financial infrastructure into Essendon’s commercial operations.
🇦🇪 GCash and Careem Pay partnership enables faster remittances for Filipinos in the UAE. Through this direct integration, users in the UAE can now avoid the delays often associated with traditional bank transfers and the inconvenience of visiting physical remittance centers.
🌍 Nexi Group and Google Cloud collaborate to drive agentic commerce across Europe. The collaboration focuses on enabling agentic commerce, in which AI agents autonomously navigate shopping journeys and execute secure payments on behalf of consumers, strictly based on their explicit authorizations.
🇺🇸 Visa and Bridge expand collaboration, with plans to bring stablecoin-linked cards to over 100 countries. Bridge enables businesses and FinTech developers to offer stablecoin-backed Visa cards. Now, through Bridge’s partnership with Lead Bank, these card transactions can be settled on-chain with Visa.
🇬🇧 10x Banking partners with Validata to redefine digital banking data migration with AI‑driven speed and accuracy. This collaboration will empower banks to accelerate innovation, deliver high-quality implementations, and significantly reduce operational and migration risks.
🇧🇷 Prudential and RecargaPay partner on digital insurance. The agreement integrates a loan protection policy, known in Brazil as “seguro prestamista,” directly into the borrowing flow within the RecargaPay app. The product is designed to cover outstanding debt balances in the event of unforeseen circumstances.
DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS
🇦🇪 Taurex raises $40 million in Series C. The raised capital will be deployed across several strategic initiatives, including the continued development of Taurex’s proprietary back-office infrastructure, the evolution of its mobile application into a full AI-powered trading platform, and the acceleration of its global expansion plans.
🇬🇧 London-based Payr raises $2.1m funding in seed round. The company plans to use the capital to expand integrations, strengthen its product infrastructure, and accelerate distribution partnerships across the residential sector.
🇺🇬 Platinum Credit Uganda secures $4m to boost MSME lending. The new capital will allow Platinum Credit Uganda to offer flexible loan products tailored to the needs of MSMEs, as well as support low and middle-income households in managing essential expenses, including education, health, and housing.
M&A
🇩🇪 Flowpay acquires Germany's Tapline. Through the acquisition, Flowpay is expanding its reach to fast-growing technology companies and presence in Germany and the United Kingdom. With Tapline’s technology, know-how, and team, Flowpay adds a new product and expertise to its offering.
🇺🇸 ECI Software Solutions accelerates embedded payments and AI-driven accounts receivable strategy with acquisition of Drypowder. This acquisition accelerates ECI’s vision of delivering intelligent, embedded financial workflows across its industry-specific ERP platforms, helping customers improve the full invoice-to-cash lifecycle.
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