Visa expects around a quarter of its payments volume to come up for renewal in fiscal 2027.
Visa has reported fiscal 2026 net revenue of $45.9bn, with its Value-Added Services (VAS) business generating $14bn in revenue during the year.
According to the company’s Q4 2026 results, VAS revenue doubled its 2023 level and grew 30% year on year in constant dollars, while Commercial and Money Movement Solutions (CMS) revenue increased 19% on the same basis.
VAS covers areas including issuing, acceptance, risk and security, with offerings such as cyber security solutions, identity and authentication tools, transaction intelligence and advisory services.
CMS focuses on commercial payments and money movement, including solutions that help businesses and financial institutions move funds.
“CMS revenue grew 19% and VAS revenue grew 30%, both in constant dollars, and their revenue collectively represents more than 40% of our total net revenue,” said Ryan McInerney, CEO of Visa, during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call.
The figures suggest while card payments continue to underpin Visa’s business, services have become a significant part of its growth story.
The company’s card-centric roots date back to Bank of America‘s 1958 BankAmericard, later renamed Visa in 1976.
Despite the emergence of alternative payment methods, cards are still at its operational core. This is proven in the fiscal 2026 results, where constant-currency payment volume rose by 9%, matching Q4 performance.
However, Visa’s latest results show a business that has changed a lot from the traditional image of a card network. Its services businesses are growing faster than payments volume and account for a substantial share of revenue.
Commercial payments and cross-border volumes gather pace
Visa’s wider operational figures also showed continued growth across commercial payments, cross-border activity and money movement.
Commercial payments volume grew 13% year-on-year in the fourth quarter in constant dollars, outpacing overall payments volume growth of 9%.
For the full year, commercial payments volume increased 12%, which McInerney described as the “fastest annual growth rate in eight years”, excluding the post-pandemic recovery.
Visa Direct also recorded strong growth, with transactions increasing 23% year-on-year in the fourth quarter. Across the full fiscal year, the service processed more than 15 billion transactions, representing approximately $1.5trn in payments volume.
Total cross-border volume increased 14% in constant dollars in the fourth quarter and 13% for the full year. Excluding transactions within Europe, growth was 14% in the fourth quarter and 12% across the year. Processed transactions reached 281.3 billion over the full year, up 9%.
However, Visa flagged uncertainty around cross-border travel spending in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East
Crucial client renewals in 2027
Looking ahead, Visa expects adjusted net revenue growth in the low double digits for fiscal 2027, with the second quarter forecast to be the weakest period for growth as the company compares against strong performance in the previous year.
One important factor will be the volume of client contracts due for renewal, as Visa expects around 25% of its payments volume to be renewed during fiscal 2027, compared with approximately 20% in fiscal 2026.
Suh said the renewal activity would mean higher client incentives year on year, but argued that these incentives are an important tool for securing long-term relationships.
“Incentives are a tool. They’re a tool that lets us align with a common set of goals and priorities with our partners as we work together to continue to grow the shared business,” he said.
He added that successful renewals help Visa secure client relationships over the long term, supporting its ability to sustain revenue growth.
Visa’s outlook assumes that consumer spending remains resilient and the broader macroeconomic environment stays generally in line with current conditions. The company also expects pricing to contribute to growth at a similar level to fiscal 2026, with more of the impact coming in the second half of the year.
“We’re not economic forecasters,” said Suh. “So, we’re assuming the macroeconomic environment stays generally where it is today and consumer spending remains resilient.”
