Visa is reportedly close to buying Fireblocks for about $2.5 billion, a move that could make paying with digital dollars simpler for shoppers and businesses.
Visa is in late-stage talks to buy Fireblocks, a company that builds the behind-the-scenes tools for stablecoins, for about $2.5 billion. That is according to a report from Axios, which cited unnamed sources. No deal has been announced.
Stablecoins are digital dollars. They are a type of cryptocurrency designed to hold a steady value, so one coin is meant to equal one dollar. Fireblocks provides custody, which means secure storage, and the infrastructure that lets companies hold and move these coins.
If the deal goes through, it would be Visa's first purchase of a company in the stablecoin business. Visa is best known for the card network that runs everyday payments. Buying a stablecoin firm would be a notable step into digital dollars.
Shoppers and business owners are the people to watch. If the deal happens, paying with digital dollars through familiar card networks could get easier. Nothing changes today, and nothing is confirmed.
Neither company's own statement was included in the material available, so the details rest on Axios and its sources.
Visa is reportedly near a $2.5 billion deal for Fireblocks, but it is unconfirmed, so treat it as a signal and not a done deal.
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