Visa is using creator financial platform Lumanu’s pre-funded wallet and agent-of-record system to move creator, freelance and production worker payments through Visa Direct, replacing week-long cross-border transfers with near-instant payouts, per Digiday.

Lumanu handles onboarding, compliance, invoicing and distribution across global markets, while Visa supplies the real-time rails. The partnership aims to streamline how brands and agencies fund projects and pay talent, reduce hidden fees and open access for smaller creators who often struggle with slow settlement and rigid vendor-setup processes.

“Through its partnerships and global payout infrastructure, Visa is able to gain important insight into how money moves through the creator economy,” Mark Nelsen, Global Head of Product, Commercial, and Money Movement Solutions at Visa, said in a statement. “This information helps identify pain points such as slow payouts and compliance challenges and informs new offerings like instant payouts, embedded financial tools, and more for creators.”

Lumanu has processed approximately $1.5 billion to date, with roughly 30% to 40% of that volume (the international portion) now running through Visa Direct. The companies plan to migrate more domestic payments onto Visa’s rails over time.

Persistent Payment Delays

Creators continue to wait too long to get paid, according to Digiday’s reporting. What should be routine disbursements can slip from days into weeks, and payments are thinned out by an expanding chain of middlemen (agencies, platforms and financial processors), each taking a slice.

Payment terms have stretched to 90 days in some cases, and in certain instances even 120 days, according to Revving, an ad tech finance startup. 

“Most delayed payments are because of disorganized processes on the brand or the agency side,” said Tim Mitchell, co-founder of influencer marketing platform CreatorOS. “The people on that side are drowning in admin.”

Research from a recent Visa report conducted with TikTok and Morning Consult, found that 30% of creators cite faster fund access as a critical operational need.

Broader Creator Support Strategy

Visa’s push into the creator economy began in 2022 with a program to help creators incorporate non-fungible (not interchangeable) tokens into their business models. 

The company has since expanded into products, educational content, and partnerships with fintech firms, including a deal with Karat Financial, a startup offering credit cards and tailored banking for content creators.

“Visa supports creators with the tools they need – the same way we support traditional small businesses around the world,” said Nelsen. “By supporting creators with the same tools and resources we offer SMBs (small and medium-sized businesses) – like simplified payment solutions, financial literacy, or access to capital, we’re broadening the definition of what it means to be a modern small business.”

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