A pilot program from Mastercard will use USDC to facilitate crypto-to-fiat conversions as part of a plan to expand the ability of issuers and crypto companies to enable consumers to spend their crypto
Circle, a global financial technology firm that provides payments and financial infrastructure for internet businesses,announced an engagement with Mastercard to make it easier for consumers and businesses globally to leverage the power of USD Coin (USDC) for high-trust, low-friction transactions.
Demand for USDC has grown dramatically in the last year as users, businesses, fintechs and global payments firms increasingly turn to USDC, the world’s fastest growing dollar digital currency, to fuel new payments and commerce activity on the internet. The use of USDC by Mastercard’s partners to simplify cryptocurrency to fiat conversions is expected to help card issuers in the future facilitate settlement to Mastercard.
As more and more digital wallet providers around the world add support for blockchain-enabled currencies and payments, this collaboration helps to accelerate the move to more internet-native financial infrastructure.
“The engagement between Circle and Mastercard reinforces how USDC is growing its role in payments and commerce on the internet, while building a vital bridge between digital currency payment systems and large, established payment networks,” said Jeremy Allaire, Co-founder and CEO of Circle. “We are thrilled to work with Mastercard to simplify card offerings for cryptocurrency companies.”
“The engagement between Mastercard and Circle fuels new payment opportunities and commerce in digital currencies,” said Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president of digital asset and blockchain products and partnerships at Mastercard. “The cryptocurrency market continues to mature and we are driving it forward together to reduce friction and create choice for people.”
Expanding Economic Activity, Increasing Efficiency, and Driving Adoption of USDC
Specifically, the engagement between Circle and Mastercard reduces the steps required for card issuers that support USDC in digital currency wallets:
- Today, card issuers that enable payments using digital assets need to first convert those assets to fiat before settling a transaction.
- That extra step is costly and complex for issuers, particularly because many digital assets do not have the same price stability with the U.S. dollar as USDC does; additionally, USDC moves faster than many traditional settlement options.
- The engagement with Mastercard will enhance its crypto card program for cryptocurrency exchanges, making it simpler for partners to convert cryptocurrency to traditional fiat currency.
With businesses and merchants powered by the Mastercard network around the world, the test of this new capability broadens opportunities to enable more crypto companies to offer a card option to allow people to spend their digital assets anywhere Mastercard is accepted.
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