Here’s what happened in crypto today
Visa is linking its VisaNet settlement records with onchain lending infrastructure to let lenders use settlement and onchain data to finance payment obligations, as stablecoin-linked card volumes surge. Michael Saylor’s Strategy paused its weekly Bitcoin purchase to repurchase $176.3 million of STRC preferred shares, and white-hat actors returned 3,400 BTC to the Liquid federation wallet after a ~4,000 BTC withdrawal that paused the network.
Why It Matters
Visa’s move creates a new channel for blockchain-based credit tied to real-world payment flows at a moment when stablecoin card activity and settlement volumes are growing rapidly. Strategy’s repurchase and the Liquid recovery both affect Bitcoin backing and market dynamics: the former alters a major buyer’s capital deployment, while the latter restores most of a sidechain’s BTC reserves and supports a planned restart.
Key Facts
- Visa stablecoin-linked card programs: more than 160 programs supported
- Visa stablecoin payment volume change: up nearly 200% year-over-year
- Visa stablecoin settlement annualized run rate: exceeded $20 billion
- Adjusted stablecoin transaction volume (June): $1.79 trillion (record)
- Credit Coop financing since 2023: more than $2.5 billion across >3,000 borrowing events and 9,000 repayments},{
Visa is moving to let lenders combine VisaNet settlement records with onchain transaction data so they can underwrite and finance payment obligations tied to stablecoin card programs. The company said lenders will be able to use that linked data to evaluate borrowers and provide blockchain-native credit to card issuers and payment firms, reducing reliance on traditional financing. Visa highlighted Credit Coop as an early example: the protocol has financed over $2.5 billion in settlement volume since 2023 across more than 3,000 borrowing events and 9,000 repayments.
The rollout comes amid rapid growth in Visa’s stablecoin activity. The network now supports over 160 stablecoin-linked card programs, with payment volumes nearly triple year-over-year and settlement volumes above a $20 billion annualized pace. Visa has broadened its footprint across settlement, card products and infrastructure as adjusted stablecoin transactions reached a record $1.79 trillion in June.
In other corporate news, Michael Saylor’s Strategy paused its regular weekly Bitcoin purchase to buy back 1.8 million STRC preferred shares for $176.3 million between Aug. 31 and Sept. 7, according to an SEC filing. The company increased the size of its Digital Credit Securities Repurchase Program to $2 billion; Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings remain at 845,050 BTC, acquired for $63.6 billion at an average price of $75,412 each. Last week the firm made a $370 million Bitcoin purchase, its first since mid-June.
A security incident on the Liquid Bitcoin sidechain also made headlines after roughly 4,000 BTC were withdrawn from federation reserves and about 3,400 BTC — roughly $270 million — were later returned by actors described as white hats. JAN3 CEO Samson Mow said the returns followed confirmation from Blockstream that affected bridge nodes had been patched; about 598 BTC remained outstanding. Blockstream reported updated software had been deployed and federation members were preparing a coordinated restart, and the returned BTC restores most of the L-BTC backing held by the federation.
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