Visa (NYSE:V) is going deeper into crypto it seems. Yesterday, a patent application by Visa was published on the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USTPO) website for a “digital fiat currency.”
Initially filed in November 2019, the document outlines the process Visa envisions to utilize “distributed ledger technology” [DLT] in the transfer of cash.
The document also states that in some embodiments, Hyperledger Fabric may be utilized to implement “various aspects” of the process. Hyperledger Fabric is a permissioned blockchain.
Visa was a founding member of the Libra Association in Switzerland. In October of 2019, Visa followed a host of other founding members and exited the Libra Association following an onslaught of criticism from regulatory and elected officials. A month later, Visa apparently filed to launch its own stablecoin.
As a payments rail, Visa has been scurrying to buttress its relevance in a fast-changing landscape of transfers and payments. Visa can handle over 65,000 transaction messages a second far faster than many off-the-rack blockchains. Yet, usurpers are seeking to challenge Visa with less costly, potentially more robust blockchain-based payments system. Pursuing a bespoke crypto service simply makes sense.
In January 2020, Visa signed an agreement to acquire the Fintech Plaid, a network that makes it easy for people to securely connect their financial accounts to the apps they use to manage their financial lives. Visa paid $4.9 billion in cash (plus an additional $400m for incidentals).
