• Visa has been stepping up initiatives centred on cryptocurrencies.
• The 1958-founded Visa already provides credit cards backed by cryptocurrencies.
• Services related to cryptocurrencies have taken up Visa.

Visa wants to incorporate cryptocurrencies into more common use cases. The industry leader in payments may introduce a feature that would let customers use self-custodial cryptocurrency wallets to pay for their electricity and phone bills. Several banks currently permit their clients to link their accounts with subscription services. This keeps the cycle going and automatically deducts the monthly utility costs. Visa is essentially aiming to launch comparable services with cryptocurrency at their core.

Cryptocurrency holders can store their own private keys using self-custodial wallets rather than depending on a decentralised exchange that might be vulnerable to attacks or hacks. Members of Visa's cryptocurrency team have suggested that the automatic 'pull' of money from self-custodial wallets established on the Ethereum blockchain be made possible. 

Users would no longer be required to manually approve each transaction if this strategy were to be carried out. Visa provides instructions on how to create a self-custodial wallet smart contract application. With the help of this application, a user may set up programmed payment instructions that will transfer money automatically between self-custodial wallet accounts on a regular basis. 

This method makes use of a developer idea called 'Account Abstraction (AA),' which is actively being investigated within the Ethereum community. Visa was established in 1958 by the Bank of America, and it is estimated that 345 million people in the US and close to 800 million people worldwide use its cards. The payments company has a dedicated team working on research and development for blockchain-based payment solutions right now. 

The business is researching different blockchain protocols' security, privacy, scalability, and interoperability as well as potential applications. The payments company has been launching a number of initiatives that advance cryptocurrencies' suitability for usage in routine transactions. For instance, Visa introduced a creator programme earlier this year to aid artists working in the digital era in comprehending and utilising NFTs.

Visa also disclosed in January of this year that during the first fiscal quarter of 2022, which concluded on December 31, its users used their crypto-linked cards to make payments totaling $2.5 billion (about Rs. 18,685 crore). When placed into context, the volume represented more than 70% of all crypto-card transactions throughout the fiscal year of 2021, which ended on September 30, 2021, indicating a rise in the use of cryptocurrencies for payments during those months.