Visa (NYSE: V) research suggests that familiar banking-style safeguards could sharply lift US consumer interest in stablecoins, even though most Americans still know little about the category.
The payments company released its Money Travels 2026 report on September 23, 2026.
The US portion of the study, conducted by Morning Consult between February 24 and March 2, surveyed 2,192 adults after first explaining terms such as “stablecoin.”
In the baseline scenario, 36 percent of respondents said they would consider using these dollar-pegged digital tokens.
That figure jumped to 56 percent when researchers described a hypothetical product that included bank-level fraud protection and deposit insurance.
The gap highlights a trust problem more than a technology problem.
Nearly two-thirds of participants (64 percent) said they care more about who offers a payment method than about the underlying rails.
When stablecoins were framed as a service from an existing financial provider, willingness rose from 36 percent to 45 percent.
Traditional commercial banks and global payment networks ranked highest on trust, at 61 percent and 60 percent respectively.
Awareness remains low. More than half of U.S. respondents (56 percent) had never heard of stablecoins.
Among those who had, many mistakenly assumed the tokens swing in value the way Bitcoin does.
Visa noted that the assets already account for a growing share of cross-border flows and that Americans want faster, cheaper ways to send money to family abroad—provided security is not sacrificed.
The same survey captured broader remittance anxieties.
About 36 percent of respondents said they had already encountered a scam tied to international transfers.
Common tactics included fake messages, account impersonation, and bogus investment pitches.
One in four had received AI-generated messages that appeared authentic, and 44 percent expressed concern that deepfakes could impersonate relatives. Roughly one in five senders reported cutting their own spending to support family overseas.
Vira Platonova, Visa’s global head of Visa Direct, framed the findings around trust: remittances fund education, daily needs, and investment back home, so the providers that work hardest to earn confidence will shape the industry’s next chapter.
Visa emphasized that the “bank-equivalent protections” scenario is hypothetical. Stablecoins are not currently covered by deposit insurance such as FDIC protection.
The report is informational only and does not constitute financial or legal advice.
Global results drew on 45,445 respondents across 20 markets, underscoring that the US pattern may not stand alone.
The research arrives as policymakers and payment firms debate how to bring consumer safeguards to dollar-backed tokens. For now, the data indicate that pairing familiar protections with trusted brands could convert curiosity into intent for a product most Americans still barely recognize.
