Visa Partners With Fintech Firm To Boost Crypto Adoption In Emerging Markets

California-based fintech startup, Tala, has partnered with Visa and USDC operator, Circle, to provide unbanked individuals in emerging markets with access to participate fully in crypto.

According to an official announcement on Wednesday, Tala intends to explore various methods that these unbanked individuals can utilize to convert, store, and spend their crypto assets.

Tala noted that it will start its initiative with the Ethereuem-based stablecoin backed by the U.S. dollar, USDC. 

Cryptocurrencies and stablecoins like USDC have many use cases, including cross-border payments and remittances. However, these benefits are not enjoyed by the over 2.5 billion unbanked people globally.

Therefore, Tala plans to provide several efficient financial tools that can help these individuals participate actively in the rapidly growing digital currency industry.

The startup has partnered with the USDC operator, Circle, along with the Stellar Development Foundation to enable its clients to gain access to USDC using Tala’s digital wallet.

This will allow users to securely save their money, enable fast and affordable cross-border money transfers, and easily convert their cryptocurrencies into other digital assets or fiat.

Its partnership with Visa will give Tala the ability to issue Visa cards that are linked to its digital wallet, enabling users to easily make purchases with their USDC at any of Visa’s merchants worldwide.

Speaking on the partnership, Circle’s co-founder, Jeremy Allaire said,

“Tala is a pathbreaker at the forefront of a new generation of financial services that provide greater access to economic opportunities for the historically underbanked. We are proud to be working alongside Visa and the Stellar Development Foundation to bring the power of dollar digital currency to millions of Tala customers around the world.”

The fintech startup says that it has processed more than $2 billion in credit to over 6 million customers in various countries like  Mexico, the Philippines, Kenya, and India.

The company’s CEO, Shivani Siroya added, 

“Tala has been a leader in leveraging data and next-generation mobile technology to solve the seemingly intractable problem of financial inclusion… We couldn’t be more excited that Visa, Circle, and the Stellar Development Foundation share our vision and want to work on a solution, not only for Tala’s 6 million global customers but for the billions more who can benefit.”

Just a few weeks ago, Visa added support for USDC on its platform, allowing its users to utilize stablecoin for payment settlements.