The collaboration between both entities to enhance USDC payment might attract some forms of skepticism owing to the Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) surrounding Circle, USDC, and the exposure to the three US banks that collapsed in the past week.
American multinational financial services firm Mastercard Inc (NYSE: MA) has entered into a strategic partnership with Stables, an Australian fintech startup to help advance stablecoin adoption in the APAC region. As reported by CoinTelegraph, the partnership will see users of the Stables platform make payments for goods and services using their USD Coin (USDC) anywhere Mastercard is accepted.
The collaboration was unveiled on March 20 and the service is billed to go live in the second quarter of this year. Stables is set to design a stablecoin-only digital wallet to support payment integration.
With the new service, Stables users can save and spend in USDC but at the Point-of-Sale (POS), the digital currency will be converted to fiat before being used for the actual payment. This new capability is termed a new frontier that can power Web 3.0 adoption according to Kallan Hogan, Mastercard’s Head of Fintech for Australasia.
“Mastercard is committed to powering innovative payment solutions that give cardholders the freedom to spend their assets where, how, and when they want,” Hogan said in a statement adding that “Stables is building a solution for the Web3 sector leveraging Mastercard’s global network and cyber and intelligence tools, including CipherTrace and Ekata, with trust and security at the core.”
It is not uncommon to find mainstream financial services firms that partner with emerging Web 3.0 service providers. The Mastercard and Stables collaboration is arguably beneficial to all parties as it helps the former create a major conduit to advance its push into the crypto ecosystem.
On the part of Stables, the new offering will help its brand gain exposure, riding on the global positioning of Mastercard. The USDC payment service will be launched in Australia, to begin with, but has plans to expand to other countries in the near future.
Mastercard and Stables Collaboration: USDC Scare
The collaboration between both entities to enhance USDC payment might attract some forms of skepticism owing to the Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) surrounding Circle, USDC, and the exposure to the three US banks that collapsed in the past week.
Citing the current outlook, Daniel Li, Stables co-founder and the chief operating officer said there is no cause for alarm and that the company is confident in the future of the USDC.
“Stablecoins will play a pivotal role in the new financial system and will be core to bridging the worlds of traditional and decentralized finance. Stables will continue to work with USDC and Circle as a pivotal part of that ecosystem.”
Despite these assurances, users who want to try out the payment system can also top up their mobile wallets with fiat as well as other forms of payments including bank transfers. The goal is to offer a more flexible and reliable means of payment and Stables believes it can achieve this with Mastercard’s help.
Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalists who relish writing about the real life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive general acceptance and worldwide integration of the emerging technology. His desires to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain based media and sites. Benjamin Godfrey is a lover of sports and agriculture.
