The collective cryptocurrency market is presently in a state of meltdown. However, it didn’t stop a payments processing giant from introducing a crypto-focused service. According to reports, Visa is launching a new consulting and advisory services in order to assist its institutional clients and merchants. The organization said that its crypto arm will cater within its consulting and analytics division. It will offer direction, solutions to banks, retailers, and other firms involved in crypto transactions.
Visa: Main objective remains to push for crypto adoption
The organization’s main objective remains to educate institutions about digital assets and push them into mainstream adoptions. According to a survey by Visa, 40% of the crypto user respondents prefer shifting from their existing bank to the one which offers crypto-specific products. Both Visa and its rival Mastercard have eyes digital assets as a key growth opportunity since its functionality caters to multiple facets.
According to Nikola Plecas, Visa’s European crypto lead, the payments company processed $3.5 billion in digital currency transactions between October 1st, 2020 to September 30, 2021. However, Vasant Prabhu, Visa’s CFO believes that Bitcoin is still not an appropriate medium of exchange. Prabhu said,
“The price is going to fluctuate from $60,000 to $50,000 in a few hours. it’s a very difficult thing for a merchant to accept (bitcoin) as a currency. I don’t know if cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin will ever be an MoE.”
However, he added stablecoins can be a medium of exchange. And Visa would facilitate such options in time.
In addition, Visa said that its crypto arm will assist pilot crypto projects. For instance, Visa is actively exploring NFTs and similar opportunities. Recently, Visa bought a CryptoPunks NFT for 49.5 ETH to convey support. The company has also partnered with crypto exchanges like FTX and Coinbase.