Mastercard Teams Up With Stellar Fintech Startup


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It may have taken some time, but legacy finance is starting to join the crypto crowd. In addition to Visa and JPMorgan, Mastercard is starting to #buidl on the blockchain, after joining hands with a Stellar-based technology company. 

In a press release, Token.io Limited announced it had been selected by Mastercard – which processes 3.4bn transaction every day –  to develop an “open banking hub.” According to the fintech startup, Token.io will develop the payment giant’s connectivity layer, helping to connect merchants and retailers to financial services.

The move is part of Mastercard’s push for a  “pan-European directory” for financial services, increasing connectivity between financial institutions and third-party providers. Mastercard will also provide a dedicated dispute resolution mechanisms, as well as ensure legal and regulatory compliance.

It’s a big step up for Token, a San Francisco-based startup whose goal is to “make it as easy to send money globally as it is to send an email or text message,” according to its website. In order to do that they provide a financial API, TokenOS, as well as a dollar-backed stablecoin on the Stellar (XLM) blockchain, Token X.

Although the new partnership will allow Mastercard to leverage blockchain technology, there are no plans, as of yet, for the company to use virtual currencies.

Token.io Limited is authorized as an Account Information Service Provider and a Payment Initiation Service Provider by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

“Fragmentation and a lack of consistency in third party access are creating complexity in open banking, ” said Token.io CEO, Steve Kirsch.  “So we welcome the chance to work with Mastercard and leverage Token’s open API platform, to address these issues at scale and together accelerate the global adoption of open banking.”


A Stellar move by Mastercard

It’s also another step forward for Mastercard, following close behind Visa and JPMorgan in exploiting developing financial technologies.

“Open banking has the potential to revolutionize how we all interact with financial services,”  said Mastercard Senior Vice President Jim Wadsworth,  who is leading the development.

Our API-led solutions will make it easier for financial institutions and third parties to act on the opportunities and create innovative banking and payments experiences for people’s everyday lives,” he added. “Token’s work in this space will help us to deliver the vision we’ve set.”

This isn’t Mastercard’s first foray into blockchain. Last December the company placed a $298M bid on Ripple’s partner Earthport, to expand its offerings in cross-border remittances.

However, the tables were reversed last week, when Visa raised its bid to $320 million. The Mastercard foundation has also invested heavily in SendFriend, a remittance service based on Ripple’s xRapid and XRP cryptocurrency. 


The author is invested in Stellar and XRP, which are mentioned in this article. 

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