Mastercard brings cryptocurrency closer to the mainstream due to its recently partnership with Wirex.
The global payment giant Mastercard announced the new partnership with the crypto payment network Wirex, which becomes the first cryptocurrency native platform to be granted with principal membership.
Wirex is the United Kingdom-based fintech company, which is the first in Europe to offer its clients free, physical debit cards that are linked to cryptocurrency accounts.
The deal allows the cryptocurrency company to directly issue its crypto payment cards on Mastercard’s network. This means that cryptocurrency users will now be able to make payments in digital coins at any location worldwide that accepts Visa cards. Furthermore, they will be capable of buying, holding and exchanging digital currencies to fiat within the same single platform.
According to Raj Dhamodharan, the Executive Vice President on Mastercard, the expansion of the company’s crypto program comes at the time, when the whole cryptocurrency industry is maturing and interest in digital assets is growing.
The cryptocurrency market continues to mature, and Mastercard is driving it forward, creating safe and secure experiences for consumers and businesses in today’s digital economy. Our work with Wirex and the wider crypto ecosystem is accelerating innovation and empowering consumers with more choice in the way they pay.
Accordingly, the CEO and co-founder of Wire, Pavel Matveev agreed on the principal membership with Mastercard to be a step forward in making all kinds of currencies equal.
He also added that Wirex is planning to announce some revolutionary news within the upcoming months, promising to “change fintech and crypto spaces forever. The news may possibly include the issuance of corporate cards for business clients as well as launching the next generation cards with free ATM withdrawals for European users.
Broader crypto acceptance
The recent Mastercard membership however is not the first one for Wirex. The London-based crypto payments company has partnered with Visa, Mastercard’s main competitor last year. The deal allows Wirex users to make multiple financial operations of both fiat and digital currencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin.
Furthermore, the leading American crypto exchange Coinbase established the principle membership with the Visa network earlier this year, allowing wider usage of digital coins in everyday situations. In the meantime, Visa itself has filed a patent application to create blockchain-based digital fiat currency to replace physical cash.
Both Mastercard and Visa also were among the initial members of the Facebook Libra project, which aimed to become the world’s single digital currency back in 2019. However, the two competing payment giants left the Libra Association after it’s facing the resistance of regulatory authorities worldwide.
