Visa has unveiled its vision for the future of finance, highlighting the pivotal role of programmable money.
In a detailed new analysis, the payment processing giant informs its vast network of over 15,000 financial institutions that the $670 billion stablecoin lending sector is no longer a mere experimental phase within the cryptocurrency space. Instead, it’s evolving into a cornerstone for the future of global lending and credit opportunities.
Following the GENIUS Act establishing regulatory guidelines for stablecoins in the U.S., Visa sees a clear opportunity to unite traditional banking practices with advanced blockchain-based lending systems. These systems operate around the clock, automatically adjust interest rates based on supply and demand mechanics, and finalize transactions in mere minutes, instead of the days typically required.
Numbers behind the revolution
The information provided by Visa illustrates a surge in institutional acceptance. During August of 2025, stablecoin borrowing reached $51.7 billion across 427,000 separate loan agreements involving 81,000 active borrowers.
These are not simply small consumer-level dealings. The average loan amount has rebounded to approximately $121,000, signaling increasing confidence in programmable lending markets by major financial players.
The market’s concentration is also telling. The lending arena is largely controlled by two platforms, Aave and Compound, handling 89% of total lending volume. Simultaneously, USDC and USDT account for over 98% of the stablecoin supply powering these markets.
Ethereum and Polygon collectively hold roughly 85% of the market share, while innovative platforms such as Base, Arbitrum, and Solana are steadily gaining traction, representing 11% of total activity.
In August 2025, the average borrowing rate was 6.4% APR, while lending yielded 5.1% APY. These rates are notably similar to those in conventional lending markets, especially when considering the continuous accessibility and rapid settlement offered by smart contracts.
Three pillars of banking’s blockchain future
Visa’s blueprint focuses on three game-changing shifts that have the potential to redefine how financial institutions approach lending, collateralization, and credit scoring.
The first aspect is the tokenized asset market, which has expanded from $5 billion in December 2023 to $12.7 billion currently.
Consulting firm McKinsey estimates that this sector could grow to between $1 trillion and $4 trillion by 2030. However, Visa foresees a larger opportunity: integrating the traditional $40 trillion credit market with programmable money infrastructure.
BlackRock’s BUIDL Fund exemplifies this shift, with $2.9 billion in tokenized Treasury assets used as collateral across various lending platforms.
Franklin Templeton’s OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund adds another $800 million, while MakerDAO now obtains approximately 30% of its $6.6 billion portfolio from real-world asset integration.
Corporate bonds, private credit, and real estate holdings may soon be leveraged as collateral in always-available global lending markets, unlocking new sources of liquidity for assets that typically remain unused between trading sessions.
The second aspect involves crypto collateral. Forward-thinking platforms, such as ether.fi, are launching non-custodial credit cards enabling users to borrow against their crypto holdings while still retaining ownership of their assets.
This resolves a major issue: accessing funds without triggering capital gains taxes or forfeiting potential upside gains.
Smart contracts facilitating real-time collateral monitoring enable automated margin calls and risk management processes that traditional credit facilities can’t match.
Banks and private credit funds could act as liquidity providers for these initiatives, providing institutional capital via programmable protocols rather than conventional bilateral lending agreements.
The final pillar concerns on-chain identity. Although secure, the current overcollateralization model limits the market to borrowers with substantial existing assets.
The next major advancement involves creating on-chain identity and credit scoring systems that analyze wallet transaction data, asset holdings, and platform interactions to develop reliable credit profiles.
Platforms like 3Jane, Providence, and Credora are pioneering ways to evaluate creditworthiness based on verifiable on-chain actions, while protecting user privacy through the use of zero-knowledge proofs.
This could allow platforms to extend undercollateralized and unsecured loans based on reputation and credit history in the future.
Opportunities and changes needed
Transitioning from conventional lending to programmable credit markets necessitates significant changes in how financial institutions assess and handle risk.
Rather than examining balance sheets and legal documents, banks must analyze protocol security audits, governance structures, and the dependability of data feeds.
This doesn’t eliminate risk, but it transforms it. Counterparty risk can be managed using smart contracts and automated liquidations, while technology-related risks become paramount.
Banks require new systems for identifying smart contract weaknesses, understanding governance token voting processes, and managing oracle dependencies.
Furthermore, Visa’s analysis includes three case studies showcasing how leading platforms are already catering to institutional demands beyond simple crypto trading.
Morpho aggregates demand and liquidity across multiple platforms, allowing users on Coinbase to benefit from shared pools containing deposits from Ledger wallet users and institutional participants, such as Société Générale.
Credit Coop uses programmable lockboxes to enable revenue-based lending. Stablecoin-linked card issuer Rain has borrowed over $175 million in USDC against future revenue streams.
Huma Finance facilitates cross-border payment financing with a monthly transaction volume of $500 million, offering lenders APYs of 10% or higher through rapid capital recycling.
These production systems process hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions monthly, delivering yields that are difficult for traditional banking products to match.
Visa’s core message for its bank partners is that the infrastructure for programmable lending is already established, handles billions in monthly volume, and offers competitive rates along with superior transparency and automation.
The regulatory landscape is taking shape, institutional adoption is accelerating, and the technical risks are increasingly well-understood.
Organizations that embrace this new infrastructure now are positioning themselves to lead the global credit markets of the future. Those who hesitate risk being outcompeted by always-on, algorithmically driven lending platforms that offer 24/7 service, immediate settlement, and transparent pricing models.
For conventional banks, the question is no longer whether stablecoin-powered lending will transform credit markets; the evidence suggests it already is.
Instead, the question is whether they will play an active role in shaping that future or be disrupted by it.