Mastercard Jumps Into Stablecoin Trend With New Crypto Payment Offering

Mastercard will enable clients to execute transactions in stablecoins, its latest initiative in an expanding effort to offer crypto-related services, the payments giant announced Monday.

New York-based Mastercard said that it had teamed up with crypto exchange OKX and payments processor Nuvei to create an end-to-end ecosystem, where clients can spend crypto via their cards and merchants can accept it.

OKX and Mastercard will release a new card allowing stablecoin holders to spend their crypto, the announcement said, while Nuvei will work with Mastercard—with help from fintech Circle—to provide the infrastructure so merchants can accept stablecoins. 

“We believe in the potential of stablecoins to streamline payments and commerce across the value chain,” Mastercard’s Chief Product Officer Jorn Lambert said. “Unlocking this is core to how we navigate the rapidly changing world, giving people and businesses the freedom they want by providing the choices they deserve.”

In recent years, Mastercard has forged partnerships with exchanges Crypto.com, Bybit, Binance, and Kraken, and payment service providers Monavate and Bleap to provide crypto services for its users. The company aims to allow users to earn rewards and spend stablecoins from their wallets at 150 million merchant locations that accept Mastercard. 

Stablecoins are digital tokens pegged to the value of assets that do not experience volatile price movements, typically US dollars. Such cryptocurrencies are usually used by traders who quickly enter and exit transactions without needing to use traditional banking services. 

The world of stablecoins has become more topical lately as politicians are currently debating two pieces of stablecoin-related legislation. 

Earlier this month, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued new guidance for stablecoins, advising in a statement that certain types of dollar-pegged tokens are not considered securities in the Commission’s view.

But the SEC notably declined to offer a perspective on yield-bearing and algorithmic stablecoins, leaving the door open for interpretation on the agency’s behalf further down the line.

Decrypt reached out to Mastercard for additional comment. 

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair