Western Union and Rain Take Stablecoins Mainstream Across Visa Network

Western Union and global stablecoin platform Rain launched a stablecoin-based solution designed to enable users to hold dollar value, protect their money in markets where currencies frequently fluctuate, and spend that value at any Visa merchant or ATM, online or in store. The new Stablecard by Western Union combines a digital USDPT wallet and a Visa card in a single experience, Western Union said in a Tuesday (Aug. 4) press release . With Stablecard, users can receive funds and store value in USDPT, which is a U.S. dollar stablecoin issued by Anchorage Digital on the Solana blockchain, in a digital wallet and use a USDPT-backed Visa secured credit card to spend anywhere Visa is accepted, according to the release. Western Union launched Stablecard in 37 markets, including key markets where local currency is not stable and there is already demand for stablecoins. The company plans to offer Stablecard in more than 60 markets by the end of the year, per the release. The Stablecard mobile app is available in the Apple App Store and Google Play . Western Union President and CEO Devin McGranahan said in the release that Stablecard furthers the company’s efforts to make global financial services more accessible. “By combining the stability of a dollar-backed digital asset with the scale of Western Union’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,” McGranahan said. Rain CEO and Co-Founder Farooq Malik said in the release that Western Union is making stablecoin efficiency accessible to people who have never thought about on-chain money. “With Rain’s enterprise infrastructure underneath both the wallet and card, users enjoy a modern experience that just works with all of the compliance and protections built in,” Malik said. Western Union executives said during a Thursday (July 30) earnings call that the company is sharpening its focus on digital and artificial intelligence. In April, as Western Union was preparing to launch USDPT, the company said the stablecoin would provide customers with a bridge between fiat and crypto, digital payment access for those who are unbanked, global accessibility, U.S. dollar price stability and 24/7 availability. Meanwhile, Rain announced in January that it raised $250 million in a Series C funding round to scale its infrastructure for stablecoin payments and add new capabilities and products. In May 2025, Rain joined Visa’s pilot program for stablecoin settlement . The company said that by fully tokenizing its credit card receivables and transitioning all settlement transactions for its Visa cards to USDC, it can settle with Visa seven days a week, 365 days a year. While stablecoins are often framed as a new front-end payment method, their core unlock is actually around merging money movement and reconciliation into a single digital packet, Malik told PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster in an interview posted in September.