Western Union has unveiled plans to introduce a new “stable card” to protect users in high-inflation economies as part of its stablecoin strategy.
Speaking at the UBS Global Technology and AI conference, chief financial officer Matthew Cagwin said the initiative builds on the company’s investor-day reveal that it is moving beyond traditional cross-border payments and into a multi-pillar digital asset roadmap.
Cagwin pointed to Argentina, where annual inflation recently hit 250–300%, noting that remittances can lose nearly half their value in a month. “Imagine a world where your family in the US is sending you $500 home, but by the time you spend it in the next month, it’s only worth $300,” he said.
“We can see a good utility for our stable card there, which is an increment to our prepaid card we have today here in the US,” he added.
Related: Crypto Biz: Corporate stablecoin race heats up with Citi, Western Union at the helm
Western Union to issue a coin
Cagwin also revealed Western Union’s intention to issue its own coin. He said the company believes its distribution footprint across 200 countries gives it a natural advantage, especially in emerging markets where remittances form a significant share of GDP.
“We think that we can make a market for our coin in those markets. And we wanted to be able to control the economics, control the compliance and control the overall distribution, and we think we can grow that beyond that,” he said.
Another major part of the company’s digital asset strategy is its Digital Asset Network, or DAN, which links Western Union to four on-ramp and off-ramp providers. The platform is expected to go live in the first half of 2025.
Related: Money giant Western Union to pilot stablecoin-powered transfers
Western Union picks Solana for its stablecoin
As Cointelegrpah reported, Western Union has confirmed that its upcoming stablecoin settlement system will be built on the Solana (SOL) blockchain. The system will center on the US Dollar Payment Token (USDPT) and a new Digital Asset Network developed with Anchorage Digital Bank. USDPT is slated to launch in the first half of 2026, with distribution through partner exchanges.
Western Union has also filed a trademark application for “WUUSD,” signaling plans for a suite of crypto services, including a wallet, trading features and stablecoin payment processing. The filing has been accepted but not yet assigned to an examiner.
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