Visa has revealed that it could soon let customers settle transactions using cryptocurrency. According to Reuters, the company has launched a pilot programme that uses USD Coin – a stablecoin that is pegged directly to the US dollar – across its payment network.
“We see increasing demand from consumers across the world to be able to access, hold and use digital currencies and we’re seeing demand from our clients to be able to build products that provide that access for consumers,” says Cuy Sheffield, Head of Cryptocurrency at Visa.
This comes shortly after crypto-enthusiast and Tesla founder, Elon Musk confirmed that the electric car company will now accept Bitcoin as a form of payment – news that has caused the price of Bitcoin to rise 5%.
Elon Musk Confirms Tesla Now Accepts Payment in Bitcoin
In a tweet, Musk says “You can now buy a Tesla with Bitcoin” and then goes on to reveal that Tesla is only using internal and open-source software and operates Bitcoin nodes directly. And that Bitcoin paid to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin, not converted to fiat currency.
According to Simon Peters, crypto analyst at eToro, the decision for Tesla to accept Bitcoin as a form of payment “will likely build more momentum for the cryptoasset“.
“Tesla and other companies are showing that crypto is here to stay, and its mainstream adoption is only going to increase. In terms of market dynamics, as more companies hold bitcoin on their balance sheet, so the finite supply is depleted even more, and this is likely to cause a supply-side squeeze and boost prices over the longer-term.”
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