Visa Shares Near 52-Week High as Stablecoin Payments Expand

VISA Inc. (NYSE:V) shares are trading higher by about 2% on Thursday, near their 52-week high and outperforming the broader financial sector despite market weakness following hotter-than-expected CPI data and renewed rate-hike concerns. • Visa stock is challenging resistance. Why did V hit a new high?Visa Moves Stablecoin-Powered Visa Direct Service Into Commercial UseThe company disclosed its stablecoin-enabled Visa Direct prefunding service is moving from pilot testing to commercial use, with payments infrastructure provider Inyo Global becoming the first enabler to launch the capability.The integration allows eligible Inyo clients to fund cross-border Visa Direct payouts with USDC in near real time, rather than relying solely on traditional funding windows.Inyo’s platform supports onboarding, fraud and compliance management, payments, and domestic and international payouts across more than 180 countries through a single connection.Visa began testing stablecoin prefunding and payouts in 2025 to explore how the technology could improve cross-border funding, liquidity management and money transfers. The commercial rollout brings the service into live operations following the pilot phase.Visa said the initiative builds on its broader efforts to connect traditional payment infrastructure with blockchain technology, helping businesses manage liquidity and move money internationally with greater speed and flexibility through its global network.Visa Direct Global Head Vira Platonova said the company is seeing stablecoin initiatives translate into real-world deployments, offering businesses more flexible ways to fund and move money globally. See More: Top Momentum Stocks Visa Earnings Preview and Analyst Price TargetsThe countdown is on: VISA is set to report earnings on Oct. 27 (confirmed). EPS Estimate: $3.44 (Up from $2.98 year-over-year) Revenue Estimate: $12.08 billion (Up from $10.72 billion YoY) Valuation: P/E of 33.3x (Indicates premium valuation relative to peers) Analyst Consensus & Recent Actions: The stock carries a Buy rating with an average price forecast of $425.60. Recent analyst moves include: Baird: Outperform (Raises target to $430 on Oct. 12) RBC Capital: Outperform (Raises target to $466 on Aug. 31) Wolfe Research: Outperform (Raises target to $460 on Aug. 25) Top ETFs Holding Visa Stock and Why Flows Matter Baron Financials ETF (NASDAQ:BCFN): 6.23% Weight State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE:XLF): 7.62% Weight Corgi Digital Banking & Fintech Infrastructure ETF (NASDAQ:KYC): 9.91% Weight Significance: Because Visa carries such a heavy weight in these funds, any significant inflows or outflows for these ETFs will likely force automatic buying or selling of the stock.Visa Stock Rises as Stablecoin Payments News HitsV Stock Price Activity: Visa shares were up 2.48% at $401.15 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data. Read Also: Top 3 Financial Stocks You May Want To Dump In Q4 Photo via Shutterstock