Visa Suggests USDC and Smart Contracts Could Reshape On‑Chain Lending After $670B in Stablecoin Loans

• Monthly on-chain lending hit $51.7 billion with 81,000+ active borrowers

• Five-year total: $670 billion in stablecoin-denominated loans via smart contracts to 1M+ unique wallets

• Data based on Visa research in collaboration with Allium; protocols include Aave, Compound and Morpho

Visa stablecoin report: Visa finds $51.7B monthly on-chain lending and $670B since 2020 — read the findings and implications for programmable, 24/7 credit markets on COINOTAG.

By COINOTAG — Published: October 16, 2025 — Updated: October 16, 2025

What is Visa’s stablecoin report on on-chain lending?

Visa’s stablecoin report is an empirical analysis showing that on-chain lending has rapidly expanded, with monthly stablecoin borrowings reaching $51.7 billion and more than $670 billion of stablecoin-denominated loans originated through smart contracts since January 2020. The study quantifies usage across protocols and chains and highlights borrower activity and market recovery trends.

How do stablecoins and smart contracts power on-chain lending?

Visa’s analysis, produced in collaboration with Allium, documents how stablecoins provide fiat-denominated price stability while smart contracts automate loan origination, collateral management and liquidation. The report identifies major stablecoins — USDC, USDT, PYUSD, FDUSD, USDP, USDG and Ripple USD (RLUSD) — active on EVM-compatible chains and Solana, and notes that protocols such as Aave, Compound and Morpho were primary conduits for lending volumes.

Key findings from the report

Visa reports that in August 2025 more than $51.7 billion in stablecoins were borrowed by users, and that cumulative smart-contract-originated lending surpassed $670 billion since January 2020. The dataset covers over one million unique wallet addresses and identifies more than 81,000 active borrowers in the most recent monthly snapshot. Visa also cites resilience and recovery in lending activity following the 2022–early-2024 downturn, with lending volumes returning to new highs in recent months.

Expert perspective

Visa Head of Crypto Cuy Sheffield emphasized the institutional view in public remarks, quoting Visa Founder Dee Hock: “the real revolution is not in electronic money, it is in electronic trust.” Sheffield added, “At Visa, we believe that stablecoins and smart contracts have the potential to revolutionize the global lending ecosystem and enable new onchain credit networks.” These statements frame the report’s focus on trust, programmability and stablecoin-backed liquidity for decentralized credit.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much stablecoin lending originated via smart contracts since 2020?

Visa’s research indicates more than $670 billion of stablecoin-denominated loans originated through smart contracts from January 2020 through the latest reporting period, flowing to over one million unique wallet addresses across major lending protocols.

Why are stablecoins important for on-chain lending?

Stablecoins offer fiat-pegged price stability and high liquidity, making them a reliable medium for lending and borrowing. When combined with smart contracts, they enable automated, 24/7 credit markets that reduce settlement friction and improve capital efficiency.

Methodology and sources

The findings summarized here are drawn from Visa’s authored research in collaboration with Allium. The analysis aggregated on-chain lending activity across EVM-compatible chains and Solana, tracked stablecoin flows (USDC, USDT, PYUSD, FDUSD, USDP, USDG, RLUSD) and measured protocol-level origination on Aave, Compound and Morpho. Sources cited in the report are referenced as plain text in this article to preserve provenance without external linking.

Key Takeaways

• Scale: On-chain stablecoin lending has reached institutional-scale volumes, with $51.7B in a single month and $670B cumulative since 2020.
• Infrastructure: Stablecoins plus smart contracts are enabling programmable, always-on credit markets across major DeFi protocols.
• Market signal: Lending activity has recovered from the 2022–early-2024 decline and is now at new multi-year highs, suggesting renewed demand for on-chain credit products.

Conclusion

The Visa stablecoin report provides quantitative evidence that stablecoins and smart contracts are central to the maturation of on-chain lending. By documenting $51.7 billion in monthly borrowing and over $670 billion originated since 2020, the study underscores how programmable money can support accessible, efficient credit markets. COINOTAG will continue tracking official data from Visa and related on-chain metrics; readers are encouraged to consult the original Visa and Allium analysis for full datasets and methodology details (sources referenced as plain text).