Overview
- Late May 2026 data compiled by Paymentscan and reported by The Kobeissi Letter show cumulative on‑chain crypto card volume approaching $7.8 billion and monthly volume rising from about $271 million in May 2025 to roughly $656 million in May 2026.
- Dollar‑pegged stablecoins are the main funding rail for these cards, with USDT making up about 62.5% of settled volume and USDC also prominent in consumer products.
- Visa routes roughly 90% of crypto‑card transactions, preserving its role at checkout while converting on‑chain balances into ordinary fiat for merchants.
- Visa’s stablecoin settlement pilot has reached an estimated $7 billion annualized run rate and operates across nine blockchains, while Bridge and Visa rolled cards into 18 Latin American countries in March and plan expansion toward more than 100 countries by year‑end 2026.
- Everyday retail use is rising—OKX and Jupiter card data show groceries, restaurants and online shopping among top merchant categories—and analysts say the shift could pressure bank deposits, FX intermediaries and correspondent banking as stablecoin balances scale.