The card company has positioned itself as a bridge between its global network and on-chain payment systems.
For a technology that’s designed to leave traditional finance on the sidelines, credit card payment networks are making significant investments in stablecoins.
Mastercard’s announced acquisition of BVNK, an enterprise stablecoin infrastructure provider, could usher in a new era of digital expansion for the legacy payments company. According to Mastercard, the deal’s final price tag could reach $1.8 billion by the time it closes at the end of 2026.
During last week’s first-quarter earnings call, Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach cited BVNK’s ecosystem of stablecoin stakeholders and liquidity providers as the primary driver for the acquisition, with a portfolio of hard-to-get licenses sweetening the deal. Once the sale is finalized, Mastercard will integrate BVNK’s tools to handle digital cross-border payments, merchant transactions, and multi-asset trading directly within its own system.
Meanwhile, rival Visa continues to expand its stablecoin-linked Visa card program.
“We now have over 160 stablecoin card programs globally with key partners, such as Rain, Reap, and Bridge,” said Visa CEO Ryan McInerney during the company’s first-quarter earnings call in January. “And our payment volume continues to grow at a very strong rate, up nearly 200% year over year in the second quarter.”
Credit Card Cannibalization
These investments raise the question of whether card networks risk cannibalizing credit card transactions by investing in a disruptive alternative payment rail like stablecoins.
“Card networks and the largest card-issuing banks take a long-term view to maximize market share and earnings while preserving ‘options’ to integrate new and disruptive technology into their existing platforms and customer base,” said Todd H. Baker, a senior fellow at the Richman Center for Business, Law and Public Policy at Columbia University’s Business and Law Schools. “They seek to be ready if and when customers demand it.”
Aaron McPherson, principal at executive advisory firm AFM Consulting, also downplayed the cannibalization threat. “The card networks still control the merchant relationship and will act to ensure there is no inherent advantage to using stablecoins over traditional rails.”
McPherson also shares the card companies’ view that stablecoins are primarily a domestic settlement mechanism. “Even when consumers spend stablecoins directly, the vast majority of transactions occur via linked debit cards, ensuring Visa and Mastercards still collect their fees.”
Crossing the Stablecoin Bridge
The card networks see stablecoins as complementary to their core offerings. Credit cards are easy to use, widely accepted worldwide, and integrated into the transaction flow, said McInerney. But of the $13 trillion transactions settled among and between Visa’s nearly 14,500 financial institution partners, nearly all are settled in fiat currency Monday through Friday.
On the other hand, those using stablecoins can complete transactions seven days a week, which provides immense liquidity and efficiency benefits, he added.
The card companies are positioning themselves as a bridge layer between their global network infrastructure and on-chain payment systems like stablecoin. By making these investments, Mastercard has been able to “build out a whole set of new services and additional opportunities,” said Miebach during the earnings call.
Visa is also taking a Visa-as-a-Service approach and engaging with the stablecoins stack at various levels. These bridging solutions have economics similar to the company’s current products, McInerney said.
These strategies have paid off for the card companies. Visa has a $7 billion annual run rate of stablecoin settlement volume, which is up more than 50% since last quarter.