Is Visa Preparing a Crypto Revolution for Banks with VTAP?

Visa does not waste time when it comes to revolutionizing the crypto industry. With its latest tokenization initiative, the company is doubling down on integrating blockchain into the banking sector. This time, it makes a strong impact with its VTAP platform, aimed at helping banks issue tokens backed by fiat currencies. The goal: widespread adoption by 2025, in partnership with players like BBVA who are betting on Ethereum for the rollout.

the pro-crypto Visa helps banks issue tokens

Visa is not just a payment giant, it’s now a major player in the crypto world, and it wants to democratize Ethereum. With the launch of its Visa Tokenized Asset Platform (VTAP), the company takes a giant step toward banking integration of blockchain.

In practice, this platform will allow banks to create, transfer, and exchange digital assets backed by fiat currencies, all on public and private blockchains.

The idea is simple: allow banks to use these tokens in smart contracts, which could significantly automate current banking processes.

• Visa anticipates VTAP will be fully operational in 2025;
• More than 15,000 institutional clients in 200 countries are targeted;
• The market for tokenized assets is expected to exceed billions of dollars by then.

For Vanessa Colella, Visa’s global head of innovation, “integrating blockchain into banking operations could very well be the next big technological shift.“

And evidently, Visa intends to be at the forefront of this transition.

Blockchain Ethereum, the key for BBVA

Visa is not alone in this venture. BBVA, one of the first banks to test the VTAP platform, plans to expand the use of these technologies to its own clients. Currently, the bank is conducting tests in a sandbox environment, where it issues, transfers, and redeems tokens on a test blockchain.

But the real change will occur in 2025, when BBVA plans to launch its pilot on the Ethereum blockchain (ETH), a crucial step in exploring new financial solutions.

The interest in Ethereum doesn’t stop there. Francisco Maroto, head of digital assets at BBVA, believes that this blockchain will play a central role in the bank’s expansion of financial services.

One of the goals of this initiative is to leverage smart contracts to automate certain tasks, thereby reducing costs while increasing efficiency. Ethereum could well become the backbone of tomorrow’s banking.

Already, last December, experts predicted that the tokenization of real assets would propel Ethereum in 2024. With billions of dollars at stake, these assets promise to offer new financial perspectives.