Western Union is preparing to roll out a stablecoin-powered prepaid card aimed squarely at people living in countries where inflation is eroding the value of local currencies. The money transfer giant plans to debut the product in high-inflation markets beginning in 2026, using a dollar-pegged stablecoin called the US Dollar Payment Token (USDPT), which will run on the Solana blockchain.
According to Chief Financial Officer Matthew Cagwin, who spoke at the UBS Global Technology and AI conference, Western Union wants to give customers in volatile economies a way to hold and spend value in a more stable unit than their domestic currencies. He highlighted Argentina as a prime example: inflation there surged above 200% last year, leaving residents scrambling to protect their purchasing power.
The planned prepaid card will be denominated in US dollars but backed by stablecoins rather than traditional fiat infrastructure. In practice, remittance recipients would receive funds loaded directly onto the card in dollar value instead of in depreciating local currency. They could then use the card for everyday purchases at merchants or convert balances into cash at Western Union locations, effectively turning remittances into a hedge against runaway inflation.
To make this work, Western Union has teamed up with Rain, a digital asset platform, to issue Visa-branded cards linked to stablecoin balances. The partnership is designed to let users convert digital assets stored in wallets connected to Rain into local cash through Western Union’s extensive physical network. This turns Western Union outlets into off-ramps for crypto value, allowing people to move seamlessly from digital tokens to physical money.
Cagwin noted that Western Union is building a broader digital asset infrastructure that includes both on-ramps and off-ramps, reducing dependence on traditional bank rails and speeding up settlement. By working with multiple providers, the company aims to create a network where money can be moved, converted, and spent across borders with less friction and, potentially, lower costs and delays than the legacy system allows.
The backbone of the new strategy is USDPT, a stablecoin scheduled for launch in 2026. The token will be issued by Anchorage Digital and operate on Solana, a blockchain known for its low transaction costs and fast processing times. Western Union plans to weave USDPT into its larger digital asset roadmap, using the token as a key settlement layer and as the core asset behind its prepaid card products in inflation-prone regions.
In practical terms, the card is designed to act as a bridge between the world of stablecoins and everyday financial life. A family member working abroad could send remittances that arrive not as local currency deposits, but as dollar-denominated value on a prepaid card. The recipient in a high-inflation country can then decide whether to keep the value in dollars on the card, spend it directly at point-of-sale terminals, or cash out when needed.
This marks a sharp reversal from Western Union’s historical attitude toward digital assets. For much of the past decade, the company kept its distance from cryptocurrencies. Back in 2017, then-Chief Technology Officer David Thompson openly questioned the ability of Bitcoin to function as real money, likening it more to a speculative commodity than a usable currency. Western Union repeatedly argued that crypto lacked the governance, compliance mechanisms, and price stability necessary for large-scale consumer use.
The tone shifted only in late 2025. As more jurisdictions clarified how digital assets should be regulated, Western Union reassessed its stance. CEO Devin McGranahan has explained that the company’s caution was driven by concerns around volatility, unclear regulatory rules, and the difficulty of ensuring customer protection in a fast-moving and sometimes opaque market. With those conditions improving, Western Union is now positioning stablecoins not as a rival, but as an extension of its existing remittance rails.
In parallel with Western Union’s move, other countries are exploring how stablecoins and digital assets can be integrated into their financial systems. Pakistan, for instance, has announced plans to launch its first national stablecoin as part of a broader push to bring virtual assets into the formal economy. Bilal Bin Saqib, who chairs the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), has said the government is “definitely” moving ahead with a stablecoin project.
Saqib has framed the initiative not only as a technological upgrade, but as a financial policy tool. He argued that a state-linked stablecoin could serve as a way to collateralize government debt while simultaneously signaling that Pakistan wants to be at the forefront of digital financial innovation, rather than lagging other markets despite having both user adoption potential and institutional capacity.
PVARA is also working on Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) concepts alongside the stablecoin agenda. Earlier this year Saqib revealed the creation of Pakistan’s Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, illustrating a multi-pronged strategy where the state engages directly with both public cryptocurrencies and sovereign digital instruments. In May, the government went further by earmarking 2,000 megawatts of electricity for Bitcoin mining operations and AI-focused data centers, underscoring a bet that digital infrastructure and digital assets will become key economic pillars.
Western Union’s move into stablecoin-backed cards should be viewed against this global backdrop. In many emerging markets, decades of currency crises, capital controls, and inflation have driven households and businesses to seek any available store of value—often in the form of US dollars held in cash, in offshore accounts, or via informal dollarization. A dollar-pegged stablecoin accessible through a familiar brand like Western Union could formalize and streamline behaviors that already exist in the shadows.
For end users in inflation-hit economies, the attraction of such a card is straightforward: it offers a way to receive, hold, and spend value that is insulated, at least partially, from local currency freefall. Instead of watching the purchasing power of a remittance melt away in a matter of weeks, recipients can keep funds in a digital dollar format and convert into local cash only when necessary—for rent, utilities, or unavoidable expenses.
From Western Union’s perspective, the strategy has several potential advantages. Stablecoin rails could reduce cross-border settlement times from days to minutes, improving liquidity management and cutting operational risk. The company can also broaden its relevance to a younger, more crypto-aware demographic that expects digital-native financial products but still values the security and physical presence of a large, regulated financial brand.
However, the model is not without challenges. Stablecoin-backed cards will have to navigate stringent anti-money laundering and know-your-customer requirements, particularly in countries with fragile financial systems. Western Union and its partners must demonstrate that digital asset flows are traceable, compliant, and adequately backed to avoid the reputational damage that would come from any perceived instability or misuse of the tokens.
There is also the question of trust in the stablecoin itself. Users in high-inflation countries are often skeptical of both their own institutions and foreign promises. For USDPT to succeed, Western Union will need to clearly explain how the token is backed, stored, and redeemed, and to show that its value is not dependent on speculative crypto markets but anchored to the US dollar through robust custodial and regulatory arrangements.
On the technology side, choosing Solana positions Western Union to benefit from low transaction fees and high throughput, but it also introduces new dependencies on the reliability and security of a specific blockchain ecosystem. Any prolonged network downtime or security incident could directly affect card functionality, so building redundancy and fallback options will be crucial if the product is to be trusted as a daily spending tool.
Pakistan’s trajectory offers a glimpse into how national-level policy and private initiatives may converge around stablecoins. By simultaneously building a regulatory framework for virtual assets, exploring CBDCs, and investing heavily in mining and AI infrastructure, the country is trying to create an environment where digital money and digital services feed into each other. In such a context, tools like stablecoin prepaid cards could serve not only remittances, but also e-commerce, savings, and government disbursement programs.
More broadly, the rise of stablecoin-based solutions from players like Western Union signals an evolution in the crypto narrative. For years, the debate centered on whether Bitcoin or other volatile tokens could replace money. The new phase is more pragmatic: using stable, dollar-linked tokens as plumbing for faster, cheaper, and more inclusive financial services—especially in places where the local banking system and currency have already failed large parts of the population.
If Western Union can successfully integrate stablecoins into its global infrastructure while maintaining regulatory compliance and customer trust, it could redefine how remittances work in inflation-racked economies. Instead of merely transferring value, the company would be offering a partial shield against macroeconomic instability, turning each cross-border payment into a small but tangible step toward financial resilience for the people who need it most.