Mastercard, responding to the burgeoning cryptocurrency space, has updated its Accelerate program to help make it easier for partners to bring cards to the market, according to a press release.
The Accelerate program works to provide a streamlined entry point to the Mastercard range of cryptocurrency programs, offering quick onboarding for crypto firms onto Mastercard, and support and assistance for their growth and transformation through market entry and global growth, the release stated. Participants can make use of Mastercard’s insights and cybersecurity services.
According to the release, the Accelerate program allows for connections with other companies and new application programming interface (API) options for payment, security and analytics needs.
The updates to the program come as Wirex has recently become the first cryptocurrency platform to be granted a Mastercard principal membership, letting it issue payment cards directly. That, according to the release, lets customers buy, hold and exchange numerous traditional and cryptocurrencies. They can convert funds between fiat and cryptocurrency and use Wirex’s Cryptoback program to get 1.5 percent back in bitcoin for every purchase made in-store.
Pavel Matveev, CEO and co-founder of Wirex, said in the release that the development “represents a growing interest and recognition in the acceptance of cryptocurrency by leading bodies and regulators and will help us to realize our vision of empowering everyone to experience a world where all currencies, traditional and crypto, are equal.”
Wirex has been growing as of late, including an expansion into Europe and the Asia Pacific region, the release stated.
“Our work with Wirex and the wider crypto ecosystem is accelerating innovation and empowering consumers with more choice in the way they pay,” said Raj Dhamodharan, executive vice president of Digital Asset and Blockchain Products and Partnerships for Mastercard, said in the release.
In August, Mastercard announced it was planning to create a cryptocurrency team. Recruitment ads targeted potential employees who were interested in the “cutting-edge intersection of payments and cryptocurrencies.” New hires would “monitor cryptocurrency ecosystem trends” and “develop new products and solutions.”
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