Report: Visa, Mastercard and Stripe move toward a joint U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin
Visa, Mastercard and Stripe are said to be progressing work on a shared stablecoin initiative that would be pegged to the U.S. dollar, CoinDesk reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Sources told CoinDesk that Coinbase is also weighing whether to join the platform as stablecoin competition pushes deeper into mainstream payments. Details on the product's design, launch schedule and how responsibilities would be split have not been disclosed.
Stablecoins now represent a market of roughly $325 billion in total value, according to CoinGecko. Tether's USDT accounts for about $115 billion and remains the category leader. A launch by major payment networks would bring large incumbents directly into the segment.
The report added that more payment companies, financial institutions and banks are advancing stablecoin projects as digital assets gain traction in payments and transfers. Stablecoins are increasingly viewed as instruments that can plug into existing settlement rails. Western Union and SoFi Technologies have announced stablecoin-related plans this year, and JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and UBS have also been reported to be working on their own efforts.
The three companies have been expanding stablecoin infrastructure individually. Stripe acquired stablecoin infrastructure firm Bridge for $1.1 billion in late 2024. Mastercard acquired BVNK earlier this year and said this week it plans to expand its stablecoin settlement capabilities to support 24/7 operations. Visa, in April, broadened its stablecoin settlement pilot to nine blockchain networks, adding Base, Polygon, Canton Network, Arc and Tempo to its existing support for Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche and Stellar.
CoinDesk said the latest discussions suggest the firms are building on these foundations toward a joint product. If Coinbase ultimately participates, the platform's connectivity for transaction origination and merchant settlement could be strengthened.
