Mastercard, Thunes Partner on Stablecoin Payments for Wallets

Mastercard launched a stablecoin-focused partnership with money-movement firm Thunes.

The collaboration, announced at the Singapore FinTech Festival, is designed to speed money movement for banks, payment service providers and end users by expanding stablecoin wallet payout capabilities, according to a Thursday (Nov. 13) press release. This involves Mastercard Move facilitating near-real-time payouts to stablecoin wallets using Thunes’ Direct Global Network.

“Mastercard Move already enables payouts to cards, bank accounts and cash across its global network,” the release said. “Through this alliance with Thunes, it will offer stablecoin wallets as a new endpoint, giving banks and payment providers greater flexibility in delivering funds, while offering end-users more choice in how they receive them.”

Benefits of the new arrangement include the ability for banks and payment providers to offer payouts to stablecoin wallets alongside accounts, cards and cash, while also breaking down barriers to financial inclusion, especially in underserved markets, according to the release.

“With Mastercard Move, we already enable transfers in 150 currencies to over 10 billion endpoints, including accounts, cards and cash,” Pratik Khowala, global head of transfer solutions at Mastercard, said in the release. “With this collaboration, we’re adding stablecoin wallets to that mix. It’s all about giving end-users more choice and unlocking new possibilities for banks and payment service providers as digital currencies continue to grow.”

The partnership follows Thunes’ launch of its Pay-to-Stablecoin-Wallets solution, which is set to be integrated into Mastercard Move’s network, the release said.

The payments industry is looking to digital asset innovations, such as stablecoin payments, to provide the emerging digital expectation layer that consumers have come to prefer.

“All of this comes down to what consumers and businesses want,” Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president for blockchain and digital assets at Mastercard, told PYMNTS in May. “It’s not just about cost, but also trust, simplicity and convenience. Customers want an end-to-end experience.”

“For consumer adoption, most people won’t even know they’re using stablecoins,” he added. “In the U.S., there’s already a robust electronic infrastructure of wallets, bank accounts, etc. Crypto-native users may interact directly with the blockchain, but most won’t. The real utility for them comes through simple experiences, like using a card linked to a stablecoin account.”