Visa has expanded stablecoin prefunding and payout functions on Visa Direct through a partnership with crypto infrastructure provider Zerohash.

According to blockchain media outlet Decrypt on Aug. 5 local time, eligible Visa Direct customers can preload balances in stablecoins and use them to process cross-border payments.

The added feature allows companies to manage liquidity without being tied to bank operating hours. Recipients can also be paid directly in stablecoins instead of local currency.

Zerohash said the feature is provided through its infrastructure and can be used within the Visa Direct network. Edward Woodford (에드워드 우드퍼드), founder and chief executive officer of Zerohash, said, "By expanding stablecoin use cases, the pace of adoption worldwide will accelerate further."

The partnership extends Visa's push to expand its stablecoin business. Visa began a pilot service with BVNK in January to offer stablecoin prefunding and payouts on Visa Direct. In July, it launched the Visa Stablecoin Platform to help banks and fintech companies issue, hold and transfer stablecoins and connect them with existing cash management and payment systems.

Visa has now broadened the range of real payment infrastructure connections through Zerohash. Mark Nelson (마크 넬슨), head of global products at Visa, said, "Stablecoins are creating opportunities to make the movement of funds in cross-border transactions faster and more flexible," adding, "Working with Zerohash helps deliver functionality in a reliable way while remaining compatible with the financial systems customers already use."

Zerohash is a crypto infrastructure company launched in 2017. It has provided infrastructure to financial institutions and in March applied for a national trust bank license to expand its custody and settlement business. In July, it also supported the launch of bitcoin, ether and solana trading on Morgan Stanley's E*Trade.

In this trend, Visa is placing more emphasis on integrating stablecoins into its existing global money movement network rather than treating them as a separate experiment. The move focuses on reducing constraints tied to bank-centred operating hours and broadening cross-border payout options for corporate clients. A key point to watch will be which customer segments and regions Visa Direct expands stablecoin-based payout functions to.