Visa Explores Using Payment Cards for Settling On-Chain Gas Fees

Visa is making significant strides in an experiment that could change how we handle on-chain gas fees. The global payment solutions provider is exploring a new way to pay these fees using Visa cards.

In a recently published report titled “Paying Blockchain Gas Fees with Card, Visa proposed an approach that allows users to conveniently cover their on-chain gas fees using traditional fiat currency through seamless card payments. The company believes this innovative advancement will significantly streamline and enhance the efficiency of blockchain transactions.

Visa’s solution builds upon Ethereum’s ERC-4337 standard and a “paymaster” smart contract. Here’s how it would work: When a user initiates a transaction through their wallet and selects Visa as their payment option, the transaction is forwarded to the paymaster.

The paymaster calculates the gas fee, charges the person, and quickly confirms the transaction using external data from Visa’s Cybersource. It also generates a digital signature and attaches it to the transaction. The wallet sends this signed transaction to the blockchain network and completes the transaction in one simple step for the user. However, Visa, behind the scene, would take care of the complexities of the transaction and settle the parties involved.

According to the report, Visa’s approach would remove the need for people to possess blockchain-specific native tokens solely for paying gas fees. They would be able to quickly settle gas fees off-chain using their Visa card.

Visa’s interest in cryptocurrency became evident in April 2023 when it launched a plan to explore cryptocurrencies, especially stablecoins. However, its first step into the world of cryptocurrencies was back in 2020, when it worked with Circle to add the USD Coin stablecoin to certain credit cards.

This latest stride underlines Visa’s commitment to driving significant and inventive progress within the cryptocurrency space and solidifying its position as a pioneer in embracing transformative financial technologies.

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