Mastercard to Terminate Co-Branded Card Partnership With Binance

Mastercard will terminate its partnership with cryptocurrency exchange Binance Holdings.

This decision will impact all four of Mastercard’s co-branded card programs with Binance, which are in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Bahrain, starting on Sept. 22, Bloomberg reported Thursday (Aug. 24).

Reached by PYMNTS, a Mastercard spokesperson confirmed the report and provided an emailed statement saying that the Sept. 22 effectiveness data “provides cardholders with a wind-down period to convert any holdings in their Binance wallet.”

The statement added, “There is no impact on any other crypto card program.”

A Binance spokesperson also confirmed the report to PYMNTS, adding in an emailed statement: “Only a tiny portion of our users (less than 1% of users in the markets mentioned) are impacted by this. Users of this product will have until September 21, 2023, when the card will no longer be available for use.

“Binance accounts around the world are not affected,” the company’s statement added. “Where available, users can also shop with crypto and send crypto using Binance Pay, a contactless, borderless and secure cryptocurrency payment technology designed by Binance.”

The reason behind Mastercard’s decision has not been disclosed, but it comes at a time when Binance is facing legal issues and regulatory scrutiny, according to the Bloomberg report. The exchange is currently being sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for alleged securities rule violations, and by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for allegedly allowing American users to access the platform without adhering to necessary regulations. Binance has strongly disputed these allegations.

The co-branded card programs that were developed by Mastercard and Binance allowed users to utilize their crypto assets for daily expenses, aiming to promote the adoption of cryptocurrencies in everyday transactions, per the report. With the partnership termination, cardholders will now have to convert any holdings in their Binance wallets.

Binance teamed with Mastercard to launch its Binance Card in Argentina in August 2022, saying the card is part of Binance’s goal of “furthering global cryptocurrency adoption in a tangible manner.” The card was designed to let Binance users in the country make purchases and pay bills with crypto at Mastercard merchants.