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Two separate announcements today pointed in the same direction.
Stablecoins are moving deeper into the U.S. financial system.
First, Visa expanded its USDC settlement program to U.S. banks, enabling participating institutions to settle obligations using Circle’s USDC on Solana.
The expansion allows banks and payment firms to move funds outside of traditional banking hours, with onchain settlement finality and integration into Visa’s existing treasury and reconciliation systems.
Visa has previously tested stablecoin settlement internationally and with select partners, but this marks a broader U.S. rollout.
At the same time, the FDIC approved a proposed rulemaking to implement the GENIUS Act, outlining how FDIC-supervised banks could issue payment stablecoins through subsidiaries.
The proposal describes application requirements, governance standards, reserve and liquidity expectations, and ongoing supervisory oversight.
Banks would be required to maintain high-quality reserves backing issued stablecoins and operate within defined risk-management and compliance frameworks.
“Visa is expanding stablecoin settlement because our banking partners are not only asking about it — they’re preparing to use it” – Visa’s Global Head of Growth Products and Strategic Partnerships Rubail Birwadker
“Fintech and crypto innovators increasingly ask us to bring stablecoins into their existing product suite.” – Gilles Gade, founder, president, and CEO of Cross River Bank
Stablecoins are increasingly being treated as payments infrastructure rather than a niche crypto product.
Visa’s expansion shows how large payment networks are integrating stablecoins into existing systems, while the FDIC’s proposal outlines the framework banks would use to issue and manage them.
The combination matters.
Institutional adoption tends to accelerate once large financial intermediaries and regulators move in the same direction.
BlackRock predicted stablecoins would be a mega force of 2026 impacting the global economy, in their 2026 outlook report.
Here’s a rundown of major token, protocol and airdrop news from the day:
Here is the list of other notable headlines from the day in NFTs:
