Mastercard, the global financial services giant, has launched a new solution called the “Mastercard Crypto Credential” aimed at enhancing user verification standards and reducing the risk of fraud in the digital asset space. The solution is designed to provide secure transactions between users verified according to standards set by Mastercard.
As part of the solution, users will be issued a “Mastercard crypto credential unique identifier” that enables them to instantly verify that an address they want to send funds to has been vetted by Mastercard and has been operating in compliance with the firm’s standards. The solution is also designed to support compliance through the exchange of essential metadata, required to meet regulations.
The firm has partnered with a long list of wallet providers, including Bit2Me, Lirium, Mercado Bitcoin, and Uphold, and blockchain companies such as Aptos Labs, Ava Labs, Polygon Labs, and The Solana Foundation. Additionally, Mastercard will be tapping into CipherTrace’s suite of services to help verify addresses and support Travel Rule compliance for cross-border transactions.
Mastercard has been continually increasing its exposure to the crypto sector over the past couple of years. The latest announcement comes just a few weeks after it launched a non-fungible token (NFT) gated musician accelerator program in collaboration with Polygon.
The program offers free access to materials, unique artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and other experiences to holders of Mastercard’s Music Pass NFT. Mastercard is also exploring the use of central bank digital currencies and is working with a variety of central banks globally to support their CBDC initiatives.
The move by Mastercard comes after its competitor, Visa, announced its new stablecoin payments-focused project. Visa is currently on the lookout for someone with strong experience in Web3 and blockchain tech to help build the next generation of products to facilitate commerce in everyone’s digital and mobile lives.
The crypto industry has been growing rapidly in recent years, and it seems that Mastercard and Visa are not going to be left behind. With these moves, both companies are positioning themselves as leaders in the space and are showing their commitment to the future of finance.