NEW: @WesternUnion LAUNCHES STABLECARD - POWERED BY @raincards REMITTANCES ARRIVE AS $USDPT STABLECOIN (ISSUED BY @Anchorage ON @solana) AND CAN BE SPENT INSTANTLY VIA APP + VISA CARDS LIVE IN 37 MARKETS, EXPANDING TO 60+ BY END-2026

Another incredible week for PayFi and our ecosystem partners. From global payment giants to the largest allocators, PayFi was the theme of the past week. Headlines ↓ 1️⃣ @WesternUnion, one of the largest payment networks, launched @USDPT_ on @solana via @Anchorage. 2️⃣ Kraken parent @Payward acquired @reapglobal for $600 million, expanding @PaywardServices with globally regulated card issuance and stablecoin payments. 3️⃣ @Visa expanded stablecoin settlement to Arc, Base, Canton, Polygon, and Tempo as volume reaches $7B with 50% QoQ growth. 4️⃣ @a16zcrypto raised $2.2B for their new fund, highlighting payments and on-chain finance as the leading use cases. 5️⃣ @HaunVentures raised $1B to invest in the new financial infrastructure including payments, banking, capital markets, custody, foreign exchange, as well as the agentic economy. 6️⃣ Huma selected @chainlink’s CCIP for cross-chain expansion of yield products, enabling the expansion of PST across chains while maintaining the highest level of security. 7️⃣ @raincards is now a @mastercard Principal Member. Stablecoin card infrastructure, now with global network reach. 8️⃣ @jpmorgan's 2026 Payments Outlook Report reiterates, “The next generation of payments will be defined by liquidity." 9️⃣ @Tether launched Developer Grants Program to fund local-first AI and payments infrastructure. 🔟 @fun announced $72 million Series A, co-led by @multicoin and @SignalFire to modernize global payments for modern fintechs. 1️⃣1️⃣ @Meta begins offering USDC creator payouts to wallets on Solana and Polygon.

📊 @Solana stablecoin market cap is back above $16B. By issuer, @Circle accounts for the largest share at $7.14B, or 44.6% market share, across USDC and EURC. Four more issuers sit above $1B: • @Tether: $3.77B (USDT) • @Paxos: $1.37B (PYUSD, USDG and USDP) • @BitGo: $1.23B (USD1 and SoFiUSD) • @Anchorage Digital: $1.15B (USDGO, USDtb and @WesternUnion's USDPT)

Western Union and its Australian division are being investigated by the country’s financial crimes agency over concerns whether its anti-money laundering and terrorism financing controls are effective

This Week in Crypto, brought to you by Holoworld Western Union launched Stablecard on Solana, tokenized $TTWO stock arrived on Jupiter, Uniswap introduced TradePools on Robinhood Chain, and the WSOP Solana Showdown dealt its first real-money hand onchain. TradFi, stocks, DeFi, and poker. Everything is moving onchain.

$WU is a good reminder that buybacks are NOT enough. Western Union had one of the more generous buyback programs out there, but deteriorating revenue and a vulnerable business model. Buybacks can be quite accretive, but if that's the thesis alone, it's not enough.