Membership status: Strategic Partner
Visa is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Visa’s mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable, and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses, and economies to thrive.
Visa is at the start of its circular economy journey. Working with its global network, Visa’s ambition is to support the wider economy to implement more sustainable business behaviours and empower individuals to rethink living choices based on circular economy principles. Visa is keen to collaborate with other organisations in the Foundation’s Network to drive innovation and explore circular economy opportunities.
Visa is committed to building an inclusive economy and advancing economic opportunity for all, as detailed in its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report. Actions towards its ESG commitments include digitally enabling small and micro businesses and supporting sustainable mass transit use. Visa also launched its Green Bond in 2020 as a mechanism for financing a transition to low-carbon operations and economy.
"Circular business models in the area of recommerce — such as rental, resale, and repair — are increasingly gaining attention in Europe and around the world to help build long-term growth and tackle global challenges such as climate change and pollution. We look forward to supporting Visa on its circular economycircular economyA systems solution framework that tackles global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. It is based on three principles, driven by design: eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials (at their highest value), and regenerate nature. journey and facilitating collaboration opportunities with other organisations in our Network."
- Andrew Morlet, CEO, Ellen MacArthur Foundation
“Wholesale change won’t happen overnight, but commerce in the circular economy – or recommerce – complements the model we know today rather than expecting to replace it completely. With climate change on the rise and a high cost of living, how we shop matters more now than it ever has before. A great payments infrastructure can reduce the friction in adopting new models like recommerce, and help us rethink the way we consume. Simple choices like reselling items when we’re finished with them, repairing devices or renting — electronics, tools, clothes, you name it — for a short time, could add up to a big impact for individuals, communities, and our planet.
- Katherine Brown, Vice President, Inclusive Impact and Sustainability at Visa Europe
The circular economy in action at Visa: digital recommerce space
Circular business models in the area of recommerce, including repair, rental, refill, resale, return, and redistributeredistributeDivert a product from its intended market to another customer so it is used at high value instead of becoming waste. are key to creating a circular economy. Visa and the Foundation will work together to understand how global payments infrastructure will evolve to support these new systems and explore the role that individuals can play in accelerating the transition to a circular economy. Given the fundamental role of payments — specifically digital payments — in modern global economies, Visa is positioned to develop recommerce products and services.
Visa has created a digital recommerce space to help individuals and businesses learn more about recommerce and enable choices that support a circular economy. Through its Behavioural Insights Lab, Visa will work with its partners to inspire action, test products, and implement real-world solutions. It will conduct experiments and share results with partners to advance pre-competitive opportunities through its network, with the Foundation ensuring its circular design principles are incorporated.
To learn more, visit Visa’s digital recommerce space.
