Visa invests $50 million in stablecoin payment startup BVNK

Visa has made a strategic investment in BVNK, a London-based stablecoin payment infrastructure startup, signaling its continued focus on digital asset innovation.

The investment was announced on May 7 by BVNK, which described the deal as “more than capital” and emphasised a partnership with Visa through its Visa Ventures arm.

“I’m particularly excited about what it means to partner with Visa—the original payments innovator,” said BVNK’s CEO, Jesse Hemson-Struthers.

He added that combining Visa’s expertise in global payment networks with BVNK’s stablecoin infrastructure “creates powerful possibilities for redefining how businesses operate in today’s digital economy.”

“Stablecoins are fast becoming a part of global payment flows,” noted Rubail Birwadker, Visa’s head of products and partnerships.

He explained that Visa invests in emerging technologies and companies like BVNK to prepare for “what’s next in commerce to better serve our clients and partners.”

BVNK recently closed a $50 million Series B funding round led by Haun Ventures in late 2024, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, DRW VC, Avenir, and Tiger Global.

At that time, BVNK was valued at approximately $750 million and planned to expand into the United States.

The company aims to develop local banking infrastructure and obtain operational licenses to serve U.S.-based businesses.

Visa’s investment follows its broader push into crypto, including enabling eligible Visa debit card users to instantly deposit and withdraw funds with Coinbase since October 2024.

During the same period, Visa launched its Tokenised Asset Platform to simplify the issuance and management of tokenised assets such as stablecoins and central bank digital currencies.