STABLECOINS | VISA is Reportedly Piloting Stablecoin Settlements for Cross-Border Mobile Money Payments in The Congo

VISA is reportedly testing the use of stablecoins to settle cross-border mobile money transactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) marking its latest effort to expand on-chain payments across Africa as demand grows for faster and cheaper international transfers.

The payments company is reportedly running the pilot with pan-African payments provider, Onafriq, using stablecoins to settle mobile money wallet top-ups behind the scenes through its VISA Pay platform without changing the customer experience.

The initiative is designed to reduce the cost and friction associated with cross-border payments, an area where mobile money has struggled despite widespread domestic adoption.

“Mobile money has done a tremendous job and been widely adopted domestically in many markets. However, cross-border remittance challenges are still significant,” VISA’s Senior Vice President and Head of Solutions for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Godfrey Sullivan, said.

He added that stablecoins could become an important settlement layer for banks, fintechs and mobile network operators.

The Democratic Republic of Congo was selected for the pilot because of its relatively low financial inclusion and cash-heavy economy providing an opportunity to test whether on-chain settlement can improve access to cross-border digital payments.

The trial comes as VISA accelerates its stablecoin strategy globally.

The company recently said it has expanded stablecoin settlement pilots across multiple markets and blockchains with settlement volumes in its Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa region increasing nearly 60-fold over the past year.

The initiative also builds on VISA’s broader push into Africa’s digital payments sector, including its partnership with Yellow Card announced in 2025, to explore stablecoin-based cross-border settlement and treasury services across the continent.

According to the GSMA, sub-Saharan Africa processed $1.4 trillion in mobile money transactions in 2025 reinforcing the region’s position as the world’s largest mobile money market. VISA argues that integrating stablecoins into existing payment infrastructure could help address persistent inefficiencies in cross-border remittances and business payments as intra-African trade expands.

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