Mastercard announces it will support select cryptocurrencies directly on its network

On February 10, 2021, Mastercard said it would begin settling select cryptocurrencies directly on its payments network later that year, rather than merely converting them to fiat behind the scenes as it had done through prior partner card programs. The company was careful to note that the "select" assets in question would likely be stablecoins meeting its compliance and consumer-protection criteria, which conveniently excluded Bitcoin and Dogecoin from the party.