The stablecoin market could grow 10x to $2 trillion over the next three years, according to Standard Chartered.
On April 28, Mastercard announced the launch of a new crypto card, called the Okx Card, in collaboration with exchange Okx.
“Mastercard and Okx will explore new opportunities to help people engage meaningfully with digital assets,” the statement reads.
Mastercard’s initiative covers use cases such as stablecoin usage, wallet enablement, card issuance, merchant payments, and on-chain remittances. The company has previously partnered with exchanges like Kraken, Crypto.com, and Binance to enable stablecoin payments via traditional cards.
In parallel, the payment giant announced strategic partnerships with payment processor Nuvei and stablecoin issuers Circle and Paxos to build an integrated payment ecosystem, enabling 150 million merchants in its network to accept stablecoins.
Jorn Lambert, Chief Product Officer at Mastercard, said:
“We believe in the potential of stablecoins to simplify payments and commerce across the value chain. Unlocking that potential is essential to navigating a rapidly evolving world, offering people and businesses the freedom they want through the choices they deserve.”
The stablecoin market heads toward exponential growth
With U.S. lawmakers introducing the bipartisan GENIUS Act to establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins, this asset class is gaining ground in payments and institutional adoption, according to Standard Chartered Bank.
The bank recently projected that the market size could grow roughly 10x to $2 trillion over the next three years.
In a report, Geoff Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Assets Research at the London-based bank, wrote:
“U.S. stablecoin legislation would further legitimize the sector. This has implications both for U.S. Treasury purchases (for reserve purposes) and for the hegemony of the U.S. dollar.”
