# Visa Launching Tokenized Asset Platform for Banks

*Author: David Christopher*
*Published: Sep 25, 2024*
*Source: https://www.bankless.com/visa-launching-tokenized-asset-platform-for-banks*

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Visa is launching a platform on Ethereum to help banks issue fiat-backed tokens, part of its broader effort to bring traditional finance to blockchains.

## What's the Scoop?
- **New Platform:** Visa’s Tokenized Asset Platform (VTAP) will allow banks to issue fiat-backed tokens powered by smart contracts, enabling faster settlement and digitized transactions for real-world assets like bonds and commodities.
- **BBVA Pilot: **[Spanish bank BBVA](https://blockworks.co/news/visa-guidance-banks-tokenized-assets) is set to be among the first to use VTAP, with a live pilot scheduled for 2025.
- **Previous Blockchain Efforts:** Visa has been involved in blockchain since at least 2021, when it started processing USDC stablecoin payments on Ethereum.
- **CBDC Involvement:** Visa is also a partner in [Brazil’s central bank’s pilot](https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/09/25/visa-to-help-banks-issue-fiat-backed-tokens-on-ethereum-via-new-tokenized-asset-platform/) for a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

## Bankless Take:
Visa’s push into blockchain and tokenized assets adds huge momentum to the broader trend of financial institutions entering the stablecoin space. With reports last week indicating [neobank Revolut](https://www.bankless.com/fintech-giant-revolut-planning-stablecoin-launch) has plans to launch a stablecoin, Visa’s VTAP signals this interest may have reached a tipping point where traditional financial institutions see stablecoins not just as a crypto tool, but as a new way to digitize and automate real-world transactions. Further, this announcement also helps clarify Ethereum’s role amid recent uncertainty, showing that institutions globally are waking up to its role as the settlement layer for crypto.
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