Mastercard | Crypto

The payments giant said USDC, PYUSD, RLUSD and other stablecoins will support new settlement options across multiple blockchains. Mastercard announced its plans to expand its settlement capabilities to let issuers and acquirers settle some card transactions using regulated stablecoins.  On Wednesday, Mastercard said the new capabilities will include intraday, weekend and holiday card settlement, supporting both fiat currencies and onchain settlement through regulated stablecoins. The company said the new options are designed to give its partners more flexibility in managing settlement liquidity and timing.  The expansion shows stablecoins moving deeper into mainstream financial infrastructure as major payments networks test tokenized dollars for settlement. It follows Mastercard securing a New York BitLicense in May, allowing its US transaction services unit to conduct regulated digital asset business activity in the state.  Read more

The payments giant can now legally conduct digital asset business activity in New York as it deepens its focus on blockchain-based settlement systems. Mastercard’s US transaction services unit has received a BitLicense from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), allowing the payments giant to conduct regulated digital asset business activity in the state. The company announced the license approval on Wednesday, but did not unveil any new consumer-facing crypto products. Instead, Mastercard said it plans to continue developing payment and settlement infrastructure tied to digital assets, focusing specifically on stablecoins and tokenized deposits. New York’s BitLicense is widely regarded as one of the strictest state-level crypto regulatory frameworks in the United States. Companies offering certain crypto-related financial services to New York residents are generally required to obtain the license. Read more

Ondo Finance said Ripple has redeemed OUSG on XRP Ledger and received a USD payout in Singapore through Mastercard and Kinexys by J.P. Morgan. The May 6 pilot tested whether a tokenized fund redemption on a public blockchain could trigger a bank-account payout across borders and banks, using a transaction path that Ondo said operated […] The post JPMorgan, Mastercard and Ripple complete cross-border XRP tokenized Treasury settlement appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The card links self-custodied wallets to Mastercard rails, allowing AI agents to spend stablecoins at checkout without preloading funds or moving assets offchain. MoonPay is launching a virtual debit card that allows users and AI agents to spend stablecoins directly from self-custodied onchain wallets at merchants that accept Mastercard, using real-time crypto-to-fiat conversion at checkout. The card, developed with Monavate and Exodus Movement, Inc., connects onchain wallets to traditional card rails, enabling transactions without preloading funds or transferring assets offchain, with smart contracts authorizing spending at the point of purchase. Available through MoonPay’s CLI and agent workflows to users in the UK and Latin America, the card is designed for programmatic use, allowing users to delegate spending permissions to AI agents, with identity verification required before issuance, the company said. Read more

THORWallet has partnered with Swiss-regulated provider Unblock to expand global access to non-custodial Mastercard solutions, advancing self-custodial finance adoption. April 30, 2026 – THORWallet has partnered with Swiss-regulated provider Unblock to expand global access to non-custodial Mastercard solutions, advancing self-custodial finance adoption. This strategic collaboration enables the issuance of non-custodial cards in over 175 countries, allowing users to leverage digital assets for daily payments within a secure, compliant framework. Rather than choosing one of the larger established crypto card players such as ether.fi or Kulipa, THORWallet selected Unblock for a very specific reason: flexibility, regulatory alignment, and global reach. Unblock is headquartered in Switzerland, operates under a Swiss regulatory framework and maintains offices in Panama, Medellin, and Miami. This international setup allows the company to support efficient card issuance and delivery across more than 175 countries, giv...

The platform aims to help businesses issue stablecoin-funded cards is aimed at using digital dollar balances at the point of sale using existing card networks. Global payments infrastructure provider Nium has launched a platform that allows businesses to issue stablecoin-funded cards through Visa and Mastercard, in the latest development enabling digital dollar balances to be spent at merchants using existing card networks. Nium said the system converts stablecoin balances into fiat at the point of sale and handles settlement, compliance and card network integration through a single integration. The tech company said it expects to be able to shorten the time required to launch stablecoin card programs from months to days by consolidating conversion, settlement and compliance into a single integration layer. Read more

Solana is aiming to attract enterprises and financial institutions to its ecosystem through a new unified developer platform, which is focused on tokenization and stablecoins. The Solana Foundation has revealed it has secured Mastercard, Worldpay, and Western Union as early users of its newly launched developer platform, as part of ongoing efforts to attract enterprises to build on its blockchain.  The Solana Developer Platform (SDP) was announced on Tuesday to enable enterprise developers to build on the blockchain using a unified interface.  Much of the focus is on real-world asset tokenization, including stablecoins, which is currently a $328 billion market, according to rwa.xyz. More than half of the total value is held on Ethereum; however, with Solana holding 6.3% share of the tokenized real-world asset market. Read more

Mastercard agreed to pay up to $1.8 billion for BVNK, a stablecoin infrastructure firm that connects blockchain payments with traditional banking rails. The deal includes $300 million in contingent payments and closes what Mastercard told investors would have taken too long to build internally: the ability to move money seamlessly across fiat and on-chain systems […] The post Crypto tried to cut out Visa and Mastercard — now they’re buying up blockchain companies appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Mastercard agreed to acquire BVNK for up to $1.8 billion as it expands further into stablecoin and blockchain-based payments. Mastercard has agreed to acquire stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK in a deal valued at up to $1.8 billion, further expanding into blockchain-based payments. The deal includes up to $300 million in contingent payments and is intended to strengthen Mastercard’s ability to connect fiat payment rails with onchain transactions, the company said on Tuesday. “We expect that most financial institutions and fintechs will in time provide digital currency services, be it with stablecoins or tokenized deposits,” Jorn Lambert, chief product officer at Mastercard, said. Read more

Mastercard said Tuesday that it will acquire stablecoin infrastructure firm BVNK in an effort to connect fiat and crypto payment rails.

Payments giant Mastercard moves to bridge fiat and crypto with $1.8 billion acquisition of the U.K. based stablecoin startup.

Mastercard’s crypto partner push is really a plan to keep stablecoins inside its network Mastercard is trying to make sure the stablecoin era still needs its card services. On Wednesday, the company launched a program with more than 85 crypto-native firms, payments providers, banks, compliance vendors, custody companies, exchanges, and infrastructure groups. On its face, […] The post Mastercard frantically doubles down on crypto to avoid becoming irrelevant and losing control appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The program connects crypto companies, banks and payment providers to explore blockchain-based payment and settlement infrastructure. Mastercard has launched a global crypto partner program that initially brings together more than 85 companies across the digital asset and payments industries to collaborate on blockchain-based payment and settlement systems. The initiative is designed to connect crypto companies, financial institutions and payments providers as digital assets begin playing a larger role in cross-border transfers, payouts and other financial services. Participants include crypto exchanges, blockchain networks and infrastructure providers including Binance, Circle, Gemini, Paxos, Ripple, PayPal, Polygon, Solana, Crypto.com, MoonPay, Fireblocks and the Canton Network. Read more

More than 85 partners will work with Mastercard to connect on-chain payments with banks, merchants and global commerce as part of the payment giant's recent crypto program.

SoFi will enable Mastercard issuers to settle card transactions in its cash-backed SoFiUSD stablecoin across the global payments network. SoFi Technologies has partnered with Mastercard to enable settlement in its dollar-backed stablecoin, SoFiUSD, across Mastercard’s global payments network, allowing issuers and acquirers to settle card transactions using a bank-issued digital dollar. Under the agreement, SoFi Bank N.A. plans to settle its own Mastercard credit and debit transactions in SoFiUSD, while SoFi’s payments technology platform Galileo will give client banks and card issuers the option to use the stablecoin for transaction settlement across the number two processor’s network. The company said SoFiUSD is the first stablecoin issued by a US nationally chartered and insured deposit bank on a public, permissionless blockchain and would allow transactions to be settled 24 hours a day, seven days a week across Mastercard’s network. Read more

MetaMask Card goes live in the US, with first-time availability across 49 states, including New York, following initial pilots over the past two years. Self-custodial cryptocurrency wallet MetaMask is rolling out its Mastercard-enabled spending card in the United States, with first-time availability in New York. MetaMask parent company Consensys on Thursday announced the general availability of the MetaMask Card across the US following initial pilots in 2025 and 2024. With the US launch, MetaMask Card joins existing availability in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, European Economic Area countries, Mexico, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, with additional markets to follow, the company said in an announcement shared with Cointelegraph. Read more

The company recently walked away from multi-billion dollar acquisition talks with Mastercard, instead opting to remain independent.

At Davos, Jeremy Allaire said Circle's stablecoin functions as shared infrastructure rather than a competitor to banks or card networks. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said the company views its dollar-pegged stablecoin as neutral financial infrastructure with network effects, rather than a product meant to compete with existing payment companies. Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box during the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, Allaire said Circle does not view card networks such as Visa or Mastercard as competitors, describing them instead as “significant partners.” According to Allaire, stablecoins are “network effect businesses,” with usage and circulation increasing as more developers and institutions integrate, adding that Circle operates as a “neutral company” that does not compete with banks, payment companies or exchanges. Read more

Binance has halted Visa and Mastercard withdrawals for Ukrainian users who relied on Bifinity services, citing changes linked to regulatory shifts. Binance has suspended card-based withdrawals for users in Ukraine, according to a notice sent to customers this week. The changes took effect on Monday and include the temporary halt of direct withdrawals to bank cards issued by Visa and Mastercard, several local Ukrainian news outlets reported. A Binance spokesperson confirmed the news to Cointelegraph, adding that the “announcement regarding changes to payment methods applies exclusively to users from Ukraine who previously used Bifinity services.” Read more

Mastercard is rolling out verified, human-readable crypto aliases to self-custody wallets, using Polygon for onchain support and Mercuryo for identity verification. Mastercard is expanding its Crypto Credential program to self-custody wallets, allowing users to send and receive cryptocurrencies using verified, username-style aliases instead of long wallet addresses. Polygon will be the first blockchain to support the rollout, while payments firm Mercuryo will handle identity verification and issue the aliases to users, according to a Tuesday press release shared with Cointelegraph. “By streamlining wallet addresses and adding meaningful verification, Mastercard Crypto Credential is building trust in digital token transfers,” said Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president of blockchain and digital assets at Mastercard. Read more