Visa to eliminate 7% of staff; tech and product roles hit

Visa will eliminate about 7% of its global workforce, or roughly 2,600 positions, the company told employees in an internal memo. The reductions will mainly affect technology and product teams that support the firm’s transaction network.

The company said the changes come as it increases use of artificial intelligence and reallocates resources to priority growth areas. The memo was distributed to more than 34,000 employees.

In the note to staff, CEO Ryan McInerney wrote that he has “deep conviction that we are doing what is right for Visa, our clients and our partners” and that the company will focus on driving efficiency to reinvest in its highest-potential opportunities. He added that “AI is also helping to accelerate this evolution and shape the way work gets done at Visa.”

A person familiar with the decision said Visa plans to redirect spending to consumer payments, commercial and money-movement solutions, and value-added services, including stablecoin, cross-border and business-to-business offerings. Company officials said cuts will be concentrated in teams supporting the core transaction network and related services.

Visa has already applied AI across its operations, including fraud prevention, transaction routing and network operations. A benchmarking report ranked Visa first in an AI index for payments, noting the company’s shift from isolated AI projects to an institutional capability applied across its network.

Evident co-founder Alexandra Mousavizadeh noted that Visa demonstrates impact at scale from AI applications across operations and the network. Her co-founder Annabel Ayles pointed out that payments firms generally have not disclosed aggregate returns on AI investment in the same way some banks have.

Banks have reported measurable productivity gains from AI. A financial institutions survey found 59% of banks reported AI-driven productivity gains in the 12 months to 2025, up from 32% the year before. Payments companies have documented many AI use cases but have published fewer figures on overall returns.

Visa framed the workforce reduction as part of an effort to evolve how the company operates and to position itself for opportunities in payments and money movement. The company said it will continue investing in areas where it expects the most growth potential.