Crypto cycles aren’t for the faint-hearted. As the industry continues to evolve from the cypherpunks into the mainstream, we can expect a lot of growing pains. The dumpster fire that was 2022 may have scared off many companies interested in exploring the sector. Case in point: Visa and Mastercard’s embrace of crypto may have hit a snag thanks to the bear market and unclear regulations. According to a new report by Reuters, the credit card giants are halting the launch of certain crypto products until market conditions and the regulatory environment improve. Cuy Sheffield, who heads Visa’s crypto division, wasn’t …

According to a a Reuters report published on Feb. 28, American payment processors Visa and Mastercard has delayed the launch of new partnerships with crypto firms due to a series of high-profile bankruptcies in the industry that have led to increased regulatory scrutiny. The move follows a period of warming relations between payment giants and crypto firms as the popularity of cryptocurrencies exploded, with Mastercard exploring payments via USD Coin and Visa targeting stablecoin settlements mere weeks before today's development. Both Visa and Mastercard are said to be pushing back the launch of certain products and services related to crypto …

Crypto assets made their way onto the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s list of priorities for 2023. So far, though, we haven’t tasted the “regulatory certainty” many have been calling for. Instead, the regulator threw the book at Kraken for allegedly failing to register its staking program. Coinbase appears next on the chopping block, but its lawyers are ready to fight. This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter delves into Coinbase’s defense of its staking program and its not-too-pleasant quarterly financials. We also look at the latest company to fall victim to Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX. Coinbase beats Q4 earnings estimates amid …

A partnership between Web3 payment protocol Immersve and payments giant Mastercard will allow users to make crypto payments on digital, physical and the Metaverse worlds. USD Coin (USDC) tokens — a US dollar-backed stablecoin issued by Circle — will be used to settle transactions on Mastercard’s network. The Mastercard-Immersve partnership uses decentralized protocols to settle real-time cryptocurrency transactions on outlets accepting Mastercard payments online. Users will be able to use their existing Web3 wallets to make direct crypto payments without relying on a third party for collateral. Instead, Immersve will partner with a third-party settlement provider and allow its users …

A 48% Bitcoin (BTC) price surge since the start of the year has pushed BTC's market cap past that of payment processing giant Visa once again. With the BTC price currently at $24,365, its market cap of $470.16 billion is now marginally above that of Visa with a market cap of $469.87 billion, according to CoinMarketCap. This is the third time that BTC has "flippened" the market cap of Visa, according to Companies Market Cap. The first time came in late December 2020 when BTC also happened to hit $25,000 for the first time. This was achieved during a price …

The merger of Web2 and Web3 tools continues as crypto-backed debit cards become more mainstream. In an announcement on Feb. 10, Bit2Me, the largest Spanish cryptocurrency exchange, revealed its new cashback debit card in partnership with Mastercard. The original Bit2Me card works for its users via the Mastercard network that hosts millions of businesses worldwide. This new update offers users up to 9% crypto cashback for all purchases made with the card online or in-store. Leif Ferreira, the CEO and co-founder of Bit2Me, told Cointelegraph that the use of already known Web2 financial tools like debit and credit cards comes …

In this week’s newsletter, read about how Yuga Labs settled a lawsuit with one of the creators of a copycat nonfungible token (NFT) collection. Learn how the Bitcoin Ordinals creator fixed the first instance of porn uploaded to the protocol and how YouTuber Coffeezilla tricked MMA fighter Dillon Danis into promoting fake NFTs. In other news, Logan Paul and his team face a class-action lawsuit for allegedly executing a rug pull, and don’t forget this week’s Nifty News, featuring Mastercard’s former NFT lead minting his resignation letter as an NFT. Yuga Labs settles lawsuit with developer involved in copycat BAYCs …

Bitcoin Ordinals causes fees to spike The Bitcoin (BTC)-native Ordinals protocol is taking up record-breaking space on the blockchain and in the process is hiking the transaction fees on the network. The divisive newly launched protocol allows for nonfungible token (NFT)-esque assets on the Bitcoin mainnet by inscribing satoshis with content. So far, inscriptions have included content such as images, documents including a PDF file of the Bitcoin whitepaper and even a fully playable clone of the video game DOOM. On Feb. 2, independent developer, Udi Wertheimer, tweeted he had conducted the “largest transaction in Bitcoin’s history” after using the …

Credit card giant MasterCard has teamed up with the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance to launch another prepaid crypto card in Latin America. On Jan. 30, Binance announced the launch of the Binance Card in Brazil. The new card is issued by Dock, a payment institution regulated by the Brazilian Central Bank. It will allow new and existing Binance users in the country with valid national IDs to make purchases and pay bills with crypto assets. The card is in a beta testing phase and will be “widely available in the coming weeks,” according to Binance. Brazil is the second …

Global payments giant Mastercard is ramping up its exposure blockchain tech yet again, after announcing a Polygon-based accelerator program to help musicians build their careers via Web3. The firm announced the "Mastercard Artist Accelerator" program via a Jan. 7 blog post, outlining that from this spring, it will connect five emerging musicians from across the globe with mentors that will help them set up their brand in the Web3 music space. "The artists will gain exclusive access to special events, music releases and more. A first-of-its-kind curriculum will teach the artists how to build (and own) their brand through Web3 …

Global payment giant Mastercard continues supporting cryptocurrency and blockchain startups as part of its fintech accelerator, the Mastercard Start Path program. Mastercard has chosen another seven industry startups for its Start Path program in order to promote the adoption of crypto and blockchain technology, the firm announced on Nov. 3. The new cohort of startups includes the crypto gateway provider Fasset, Singapore’s crypto payment platform Digital Treasures Center and the Colombian stablecoin-focused firm Stable. Mastercard previously partnered with Fasset in July to jointly work on digital solutions to drive financial inclusion in Indonesia. The latest Mastercard Start Path program also …

Crypto exchange Blockchain.com has partnered with Visa to launch a crypto card, available to only U.S. residents initially, which allows users to pay using their crypto or cash balance wherever Visa debit cards are accepted. In an Oct. 26 announcement, Blockchain.com revealed that there would be no sign-up or annual fees, no transaction fees, and users would earn 1% of all purchases back in crypto. In a Yahoo Finance interview, Blockchain.com CEO Peter Smith said the card already had 50,000 signed onto a waiting list, noting: “There’s still a lot of demand for crypto products, but you’re seeing that demand …