EL7.AI
CryptoMedium•22 October 2026•
4 min read

Western Union Picks Noah for Stablecoin Transfers Targeting More Than 200 Countries and Territories

Key Facts

1The planned service aims to support more than 60 currencies across more than 200 countries and territories.
2Stablecard's rollout began in 37 markets.
3Western Union's digital business revenue grew 7% under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and 6% on an adjusted basis in the second quarter of 2026.
4USDPT can be redeemed for U.S. dollars at a ratio of 1:1, according to Western Union.
5Western Union aims to expand Stablecard availability to more than 60 markets by the end of the year in which its launch was announced.

Western Union has selected Noah to provide the blockchain-based banking network for its receive-redirect service, according to an announcement published by Noah on October 20, 2026, linking transfers sent through agents with receipt in a digital wallet. Noah said the planned service would enable stablecoin transfers across more than 200 countries and territories. The announced scope includes support for more than 60 currencies, with recipients receiving funds in Western Union's dollar-denominated stablecoin, USDPT. Senders will be able to send money through the company's agent locations, while recipients receive the token in a Western Union wallet. Malcolm Clarke, Western Union's global head of digital assets, said in the announcement: "Customers increasingly want greater flexibility in how they receive, hold and use money."

Under the announced arrangement, Noah will provide the treasury services and licensing needed to handle prefunding, USDPT conversion and distribution to recipients. The platform said these operations would comply with local regulatory requirements in the relevant markets. Noah had announced that it secured a crypto-asset service provider licence under the European Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. It also obtained a payment institution licence under the European Payment Services Directive, supporting the provision of stablecoin and traditional payment services within the European Union. On the operational side, Western Union's strategy for the token includes developing near-instant settlement between the company and its agents. The company said this would help it "reduce idle balances and deploy liquidity" as part of its plan to use digital infrastructure to manage funds between the company and its agent network.

Western Union launched USDPT on May 4, 2026, before announcing its selection of Noah to operate the infrastructure for the new service. According to the launch statement, the token is issued by Anchorage Digital Bank on the Solana network, is denominated in dollars and is fully backed by U.S. dollars. The company says the token is fully backed by reserves and can be redeemed for U.S. dollars at a ratio of 1:1. Clarifying its status, Western Union stressed that USDPT is not issued, backed, endorsed or guaranteed by the U.S. government. The Noah partnership was preceded by a move to enable purchases and sales of the token through Bybit's cash channels. That move covered selected markets in Latin America as part of an expansion of access channels for the stablecoin.

The partnership follows 7% revenue growth under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles in Western Union's branded digital business in the second quarter of 2026, according to the company's results filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. On an adjusted basis, revenue growth in the business was 6% over the same period. The digital business accounted for 32% of total consumer money transfer revenue in the second quarter. Its share of transactions in that business was 43%, according to the earnings report, giving it a greater weight in transaction volumes than in revenue. In the context of global money transfer costs, World Bank data showed that the average cost of remittances fell from 6.49% in the first quarter of 2025 to 6.36% in the third quarter of the same year.

As part of its efforts to enable the use of digital balances, Western Union announced the launch of Stablecard in partnership with Rain on August 4, 2026. The product combines a digital wallet and a Visa credit card secured by USDPT balances, according to the company's statement. It allows users to hold dollar value and spend it at merchants that accept Visa cards. The card's rollout began in 37 markets, the initial launch footprint for the product. Western Union aims to expand availability to more than 60 markets by the end of 2026. Before year-end, the company will discuss its third-quarter 2026 results on November 4, 2026, its next financial reporting date for tracking business performance.