Mastercard says stablecoins are not ready for everyday payments

Mastercard’s Chief Product Officer, Jorn Lambert, has highlighted that stablecoins still face significant hurdles before becoming widely used for everyday payments.

While the technology offers advantages such as fast transactions, 24/7 availability, low fees, and programmability, these features alone do not ensure consumer adoption. A seamless user experience and broad accessibility remain essential.

Mastercard envisions itself as a crucial infrastructure provider connecting crypto and traditional finance. The company has partnered with Paxos to support USDG stablecoin operations and backs other stablecoins like USDC and PYUSD.

Mastercard’s goal is to enable stablecoins to scale by integrating them into existing payment networks, combining global acceptance with regulatory compliance.

Currently, about 90% of stablecoin transactions are linked to crypto trading rather than retail purchases. User adoption is hindered by friction at checkout and limited merchant acceptance. Lambert compares stablecoins to prepaid cards, usable with some merchants but lacking widespread utility.

Furthermore, converting between fiat and stablecoins adds costs related to foreign exchange, regulation, and settlement.

Regulatory clarity, particularly in the US, is encouraging banks and institutions to explore stablecoin offerings. The evolving legal landscape may also prompt governments to issue their own digital currencies or regulate private stablecoins to prevent risks like dollarisation.

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