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Report Claims Visa and Mastercard Plan to Pause New Partnerships, Visa’s Head of Crypto Insists Story Is Inaccurate – Bitcoin News
Credit card and payment services giants Mastercard and Visa are halting new partnerships with cryptocurrency firms, according to a recent report from sources familiar with the matter. This news comes after the collapse of several cryptocurrency businesses that offered crypto debit cards and failed due to financial difficulties last year. After the report was published, Visa’s head of crypto, Cuy Sheffield, criticized the story as “inaccurate as far as Visa is concerned.”
Visa and Mastercard clarify their stance on cryptocurrency despite alleged partnership hiatus
A report published by Reuters on Tuesday said that Visa and Mastercard, two payment firms, are suspending their involvement in cryptocurrency ventures, according to unnamed sources. The sources cited “high-profile collapses” as the reason for the companies’ decision, noting that discussions on the subject had taken place.
Manya Saini, a Reuters reporter, spoke with a spokesperson for both Visa and Mastercard, and each provided a separate comment to the reporter. “Recent high-profile failures in the crypto sector are an important reminder that we have a long way to go before crypto becomes part of mainstream payments and financial services,” a Visa spokesperson explained to Saini.
According to the Visa spokesperson, the errors do not change the payment processor’s cryptocurrency and blockchain strategy. The Mastercard representative stated: “Our efforts continue to focus on the underlying blockchain technology and how it can be used to help address current pain points and build more efficient systems.”
The cryptocurrency industry has experienced a number of notable collapses and bankruptcies, including several businesses such as FTX, Celsius and Blockfi, which had issued debit cards. After the collapse of these crypto companies, their debit cards became useless and were discontinued. However, in mid-February 2023, Wirex announced a partnership with Visa, a move the Reuters report appears to contradict. Before the collapse of FTX in late October 2022, Blockchain.com and Visa had teamed up to release a crypto debit card.
The Reuters report also included a statement from American Express, which partnered with Abra in June 2022. An American Express spokesperson stated that while the company is interested in using cryptocurrency for redeeming reward points, it is not a strategic priority in the near term. This position is one that the company has had for some time. “In the short term, we do not see crypto replacing our core payment and lending services,” the American Express representative said in an email.
Visa’s Crypto Chief Tells Reuters ‘Story Is Inaccurate’
According to the Reuters report, Cuy Sheffield, head of crypto at Visa, tweeted that “the story is inaccurate as it pertains to Visa.” Sheffield stated that Visa continues to “work with crypto companies to improve fiat on and off ramps, as well as advance our product roadmap to build new products that can facilitate stablecoin payments in a secure, compliant and convenient way.” The Visa chief added:
Despite the challenges and uncertainties in the crypto ecosystem, our view has not changed that fiat-backed digital currencies running on public blockchains have the potential to play an important role in the payments ecosystem.
Sheffield further added that anyone “building at the intersection of crypto and payments” for them to reach out. “We would like to work with you,” the Visa chief added.
What do you think of the Reuters report that claims Visa and Mastercard are stopping new crypto partnerships right now? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below.
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