Visa and Lloyds Banking Group have completed a live cross-border settlement pilot using USDC acquired through Archax, testing how stablecoins can operate within institutional settlement processes.
The pilot focused on settlement rather than the payment initiation process. Through real-world transactions, the companies examined how USDC could be incorporated alongside existing financial infrastructure while assessing potential effects on settlement speed, transparency, and operational processes.
Visa and Lloyds completed live cross-border transactions using USDC to test how stablecoin settlement can work alongside established banking infrastructure and support transactions beyond traditional banking hours.
The trial was designed to address practical issues that financial institutions face when moving funds between jurisdictions. Cross-border settlement can involve different banking systems, operating hours and financial infrastructures, creating delays and uncertainty around when funds become available.
Lloyds purchased USDC through Archax
Lloyds obtained the USDC used during the pilot through Archax, a UK-regulated digital asset exchange. The settlement volume was recorded through Lloyds’ Corporate Markets operation in Jersey before being transferred to Visa in the United States.
The test also examined settlement across both private and public blockchain environments. Lloyds operated its own node on Canton, using the network’s configurable privacy capabilities, while Visa supported settlement on a separate public blockchain.
The companies said the test demonstrated interoperability between different blockchain networks. This capability is becoming increasingly relevant as institutional digital-asset activity develops across multiple blockchain environments rather than being concentrated on a single network.
For financial institutions, interoperability can allow liquidity and transaction activity to move between different networks while maintaining access to a broader range of counterparties and infrastructure. Visa’s role in the pilot was also intended to demonstrate how established payment networks can help reduce the operational complexity associated with stablecoin settlement.
Stablecoins could extend settlement beyond banking hours
A central objective of the pilot was to examine whether stablecoins could address limitations associated with traditional cross-border settlement, particularly outside normal banking hours.
Conventional settlement processes can be affected by weekends, holidays and differences in operating hours between financial institutions in different jurisdictions. Transactions initiated outside those periods may not settle until the next available banking window, potentially creating delays of a day or longer.
According to the companies, around-the-clock settlement could give financial institutions greater visibility into the status of funds and improve certainty around when money reaches its destination. It could also reduce the amount of liquidity that businesses need to maintain while transactions are waiting to settle.
The pilot tested whether stablecoin settlement could provide continuous availability, potentially improving liquidity management and reducing uncertainty caused by banking-hour restrictions in cross-border transactions.
The companies identified weekends and holidays as periods when continuous settlement could be particularly useful. Businesses operating across multiple markets may need to manage obligations regardless of local banking schedules, making settlement timing an important component of treasury and liquidity planning.
Peter Left, head of digital assets at Lloyds Banking Group, said the bank sees potential applications for stablecoins in cross-border transactions, where differences in markets, currencies and financial infrastructure can increase complexity. The live pilot allowed Lloyds to examine those capabilities using actual settlement activity rather than relying solely on theoretical testing.
Left also highlighted the importance of interoperability between blockchain networks. The ability to connect different networks could support broader applications for digital money as institutional adoption develops.
Visa examines stablecoins alongside existing infrastructure
Rob Cameron, Visa’s group country manager for the UK and Ireland, said businesses increasingly operate across borders and outside conventional working hours, while existing money-movement infrastructure does not always provide equivalent flexibility.
The pilot demonstrated how stablecoins could operate alongside established banking systems rather than requiring financial institutions to replace their existing infrastructure. This could give banks and corporate clients additional options for determining how and when funds are settled.
The trial forms part of Lloyds Banking Group’s broader investigation into digital assets and tokenized money as potential tools for moving value between businesses and financial institutions.
The development adds to institutional efforts to evaluate stablecoins through controlled, real-world applications. Rather than treating digital assets as a replacement for conventional banking infrastructure, the pilot examined how blockchain-based settlement could complement existing systems while improving availability, transparency, and flexibility in cross-border financial operations.