Visa announced a partnership with Bridge to launch stablecoin-backed cards in Latin America. This means that instead of being linked only to the dollar or euro, you will be able to spend stablecoins like USDC, USDP, and FDUSD in any purchase at more than 150 million merchants accepting Visa, marking a significant shift in global payment strategy.
Why is this step important?
The presence of Visa and Mastercard in the equation gives confidence to the average user and companies that stablecoins have become part of the financial infrastructure, not just investment assets.
In Latin America, like Peru and Argentina, inflation is high and local currencies are unstable. Stablecoins will provide protection from price fluctuations and enable people to have a stable means of payment.
The user does not need to understand blockchain or complicate themselves with complex digital wallets; they will just use the card like any regular bank card.
After that, Mastercard did not form partnerships with Circle, Paxos, and Novi to integrate stablecoin payments globally. Everything points to one direction: stablecoins will become an integral part of our daily lives within a few years.
UAE the new generation of digital currency
In this context, the UAE has not stopped at traditional banks. They are working on launching a digital currency backed by the Emirati dirham called AE Coin, with expectations for launch in the last quarter of 2025. The key partners are IHC, ADQ, and First Abu Dhabi Bank, under the supervision of the Central Bank of the UAE.
The project's goals are to enhance financial inclusion internally and externally, raise payment efficiency, reduce cost and time in transfers, and accelerate digital economy growth and innovation in M2M solutions and artificial intelligence.
Egypt is on the way...
Egypt has not been silent either, but we have some differences: the digital pound (E-Pound) being worked on by the central bank is a CBDC, not a stablecoin. It means it is a fully digital currency backed by the Egyptian pound, and its main goal is to enhance the efficiency of monetary policy and financial inclusion. Egypt has set a goal to launch the digital pound before 2030, reflecting that steps are being taken carefully and with strong regulation.
So far, there are no official regulations or partnerships with private entities for issuing stablecoins backed by the Egyptian pound. Experts have proposed that this could support tourism and ease the burden of remittances, but no practical measures have been taken yet.
The global trend is clear: Visa, Mastercard, and central banks like the UAE are establishing the idea that digital currency and stablecoins are turning into real financial products used daily.
Latin America is a living example of how stablecoins address the inflation crisis and provide consumers and businesses with a stable and fast payment method. Egypt needs to take a similar step, either by accelerating the launch of the CBDC or encouraging private stablecoin initiatives under central supervision.
Whether Visa in LATAM or AE Coin in the UAE, we must ensure compliance with anti-money laundering standards and also strengthen cybersecurity for the digital infrastructure.
With infrastructure supporting digital payments, new solutions will emerge in decentralized finance (DeFi), the Internet of Things (IoT), and the tourism sector, especially since Egypt is a tourist country par excellence.
