Visa bets on Stablecoins, AI and Super App Partnerships to Dominate Asia’s Rapidly Evolving payments Landscape
SINGAPORE – Visa is actively integrating stablecoins and artificial intelligence into its payment infrastructure while forging partnerships with “super apps” to maintain its leading position in the Asia-Pacific region, according to Stephen Karpin, Visa’s Asia-Pacific president. The moves come as Asia’s payments space undergoes a period of unprecedented change, with more disruption occurring in the last five years than in the previous fifty, Karpin stated.
Visa has launched a stable settlement pilot program enabling select partners to utilize stablecoins – digital currencies pegged to less volatile assets like the U.S. dollar – across supported blockchains. “We want to make [stablecoins] one of the options to make and receive payments all around the world, when the regulatory environment is ready,” Karpin said.He added that Visa possesses the “technology and capability” to assist businesses of all sizes in embracing Web3 commerce. The company recognized the potential of blockchain technology for payments a decade ago and is now seeing a surge in cross-border transactions conducted via stablecoins.
The shift in the Asian payments landscape is largely driven by the rise of super apps – single platforms consolidating services like ride-hailing, food delivery, and digital payments.These first gained traction in mainland China with the launch of Alipay in 2004 and wechat Pay in 2013, followed by GrabPay in Southeast Asia in 2016.
Rather than viewing these apps as competition, Visa is actively seeking collaboration. “You can live your life on a super app now, so we’re partnering with them to digitalize the visa credential,” Karpin explained. A prime example is Visa’s partnership with Taiwan’s Line Pay, allowing Taiwanese users to make payments abroad by scanning QR codes connected to the Visa network.
Visa’s global acceptance network also provides a crucial advantage. “When traveling further abroad, you can’t use a super app with a QR. We’re partnering with e-wallets so you can use your phone to tap to get onto the New York subway, or buy lunch in London,” Karpin said.
While surpassed by China’s UnionPay in 2015 in terms of annual card payment value and number of issued cards, Visa remains the world’s second-largest card payment organization and currently leads in global transaction volume. The company ranks No. 127 on the Fortune 500 list. Karpin has been with Visa for over a decade, gaining experience in the South Pacific, southeast Asia, and Japan before assuming his current role in 2023.
