Dive Brief:

• Mastercard and SoFi Technologies beefed up their partnership to allow SoFiUSD, the fintech firm’s stablecoin, as a settlement option across Mastercard’s worldwide payment network, the companies said Tuesday.
• The card network and the digital bank seek to help issuers and acquirers settle card-based transactions in Mastercard’s system using SoFiUSD. The integration will allow Mastercard customers to transfer funds quickly for use cases, such as cross-border remittances and business-to-business money transfers, per the press release.
• Mastercard will support SoFiUSD across its multi-token network, the hub that connects fiat currencies with digital assets. SoFi Bank will also settle its credit and debit transactions, supported by Mastercard’s network, in SoFiUSD, the release said.

Dive Insight:

Mastercard is partnering with SoFi to capitalize on the emerging stablecoin market. Citing data from McKinsey & Company, the release noted that stablecoin issuance has doubled since early 2024. Mastercard and SoFi also work together to offer the bank’s debit card.

The companies plan to deepen their partnership over time.

Today, SoFi’s stablecoin is fully reserved for immediate redemption, providing liquidity to merchants and issuers using Mastercard’s services, the release said. In the future, the two will introduce more initiatives aimed at driving SoFiUSD usage, including stablecoin-enabled card programs and cross-border remittances and disbursements, all of which would be subject to regulatory approval and Mastercard’s policies, per the release. 

“By working with SoFi to enable SoFiUSD across the Mastercard network, we're expanding how trusted digital currencies can be used at global scale,” Sherri Haymond, global head of digital commercialization at Mastercard, said in a press release. “Bringing stablecoin settlement on our network will connect regulated stablecoins with the reliability, security, and reach that consumers, businesses and financial institutions expect.”

Prior to its partnership with SoFi, Mastercard had previously expressed interest in the stablecoin market.

During an investor conference last April, the company noted that it was exploring ways to integrate stablecoins in its cryptocurrency business and whether the tool could be used for interoperability.

Last July, the company said it wants to introduce new use cases for stablecoins, a goal it plans to achieve with the help of partners in the stablecoin space. That same month, Mastercard executives noted in a presentation that the company wants to venture further into the up-and-coming stablecoin market.

SoFi’s collaboration with Mastercard comes three months after it launched its stablecoin. The company debuted SoFiUSD in December, making it the first national bank to offer access to its stablecoin “on a public, permissionless blockchain,” the release said. In addition to using the stablecoin for its crypto arm, SoFi said it wants card networks, retailers, and other businesses to use the technology to settle transactions faster, safer and cheaper.