Consumer interest and investment in digital currencies are growing, with research showing that up to 20 percent of the population of some countries are holding cryptocurrencies1, and an increasing number of merchants, digital players and financial institutions are exploring crypto payments.
Aiding adoption and creating innovative experiences in the crypto space, Mastercard today announced the expansion of its cryptocurrency program, „making it simpler and faster for partners to bring secure, compliant payment cards to market”, the company said.
Supercharging the partnership experience, cryptocurrency and crypto card partners are invited to join Mastercard’s Accelerate program2 for emerging brands and fintechs, giving them access to everything they need to grow quickly.
The move comes as Wirex becomes the first native cryptocurrency platform to be granted a Mastercard principal membership, allowing it to directly issue payment cards.
Mastercard’s Accelerate program provides a simple, single entry point to the company’s wide range of specialized programs and gives crypto partners and other fintechs support and assistance for every stage of their growth and transformation, from market entry to global expansion.
„Crypto partners can be onboarded to Mastercard in a matter of weeks and are provided a guided experience through everything the company can offer,” the card giant said.
Mastercard will only work with crypto partners that follow our core principles. Cryptocurrency partnerships must:
Provide strong consumer protection, including privacy and security of the consumers’ information and transactions;
Deliver a level playing field for all stakeholders, including but not limited to financial institutions, merchants and mobile network operators;
Operate in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, including those applicable to anti-money laundering, and consistent with the economic systems of the countries the network operates in.
###
[1] Source: Statista Global Consumer Survey, 2019
[2] Accelerate is comprised of a range of award-winning programs that have helped participants all over the world access and benefit from Mastercard’s ecosystem, customers and innovations:
Banking 4.0 – „how was the experience for you”
„So many people are coming here to Bucharest, people that I see and interact on linkedin and now I get the change to meet them in person. It was like being to the Football World Cup but this was the World Cup on linkedin in payments and open banking.”
Many more interesting quotes in the video below:
