Mastercard seeks to expand the binding of crypto cards

LONDON, April 28 (Reuters) – Mastercard ( MA.N ) will expand its cryptocurrency payment card program by seeking more partnerships with crypto firms, the company’s head of crypto and blockchain said, even as the sector faces closer scrutiny from regulators and banks remain wary .

Mastercard has already partnered with crypto exchanges including Binance, Nexo and Gemini to offer crypto-linked payment cards in some countries. The Binance cards allow users to make payments in traditional currencies, funded by their cryptocurrency holdings on the exchange.

“We have dozens of partners around the world offering crypto card programs and they continue to expand,” Raj Dhamodharan, Mastercard’s head of crypto and blockchain, told Reuters on Thursday.

“Providing access to crypto securely is also part of our value proposition and we continue to do so.”

Banks have become wary of crypto customers after a number of major crypto firms collapsed last year, including the bankruptcy of major exchange FTX. Meanwhile, US regulators are increasingly cracking down on what they say is a lack of compliance in the market.

In March, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued Binance, accusing the world’s largest crypto exchange of running what the regulator called an “illegal” exchange and a “sham” compliance program.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the complaint contained an “incomplete recitation of the facts”.

Dhamodharan declined to comment on Binance specifically, but said any card program “goes through full due diligence” and is continuously monitored.

Some banks, including Santander and NatWest, limit the amount of money UK customers can transfer to cryptocurrency exchanges to protect consumers from fraud and scams.

In November, rival Visa ( VISA.NS ) broke its global credit card agreements with FTX. American Express ( AXP.N ) — which in 2021 had said it would consider using crypto as a possible option for redeeming rewards points — said in February that it did not see crypto replacing its main payment and lending services in the near term.

When asked if Mastercard is considering imposing restrictions on the amount of money that can be transferred to crypto exchanges using the payment network, Dhamodharan said: “We are not here to pick winners. We are not here to pick which transaction will happen or should happen. not happen.”

He added that users of Mastercard’s network go through a series of compliance checks, adding that the company has invested in cryptanalysis technology.

Mastercard is “actually quite enthusiastic” about the underlying blockchain technology that powers cryptocurrencies, Dhamodharan said.

– We believe there will be more and more regulated money for this, he said.

Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft, editing by Louise Heavens

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