Together with Bakkt, Mastercard is building Bitcoin and Co. into its ecosystem. This means that over 2 billion customers will soon have access to cryptocurrencies.
Rebuilding the financial sector is not a trivial undertaking. With the support of established financial companies, however, it will probably succeed a little faster. In this light, the latest announcement from Mastercard is a bang. Because how CNBC first reported, US-based payment service provider Mastercard will soon be integrating crypto services into its ecosystem. This includes, for example, the option of paying with cryptocurrencies and earning rewards in Bitcoin and Co. With 35 million contractors and 2.8 billion plastic cards issued, Mastercard is one of the largest payment service providers in the world.
Our partners, be they banks, fintechs or retailers, can offer their customers the opportunity to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies through an integration with the Bakkt platform,
says Sherri Haymond, Executive Vice President, Digital Partnerships CNBC. The aim is to slow down the steady outflow from the traditional financial sector into the crypto sector.
Bakkt takes over crypto custody
For the mammoth undertaking of crypto integration, Mastercard says it is partnering with Bakkt.
In the past, the asset manager has mainly appeared with regard to his physically booked Bitcoin futures. Bakkt will now organize the custody of the crypto assets for Mastercard. For Bakkt it is already a lucrative business: The share price of the listed company has been 471 percent up since the announcement.
Bakkt was only listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on October 18th, we reported.
The plan to integrate cryptocurrencies into the ecosystem has been in the drawer at Mastercard for some time. In February of this year, Mastercard published a press release in which the company explained its intentions. It says:
Our philosophy when it comes to cryptocurrencies is simple: it’s about choice. Mastercard is not here to recommend that you use cryptocurrencies. But we’re here to give customers, retailers and companies the ability to move digital assets – traditional or cryptocurrencies – as they want. It should be your decision, it is your money.
The message is quite relevant to crypto adoption. Because although the crypto sector is becoming more and more accessible for people who are less tech-savvy, there were still some hurdles to overcome before investing. Thanks to the Crypto-as-a-Service integration of Mastercard integrations, cryptocurrencies should now become more suitable for everyday use.
However, the announcement could not be read from the courses. Bitcoin is only 0.5 percent up and is currently trading at $ 62,760. With a market capitalization of USD 2.75 trillion, the overall market is still 1.6 percent in the green.