Empire
July 3, 2025

Crypto Meets Cards: Shaping the Future of Commerce | Permissionless IV Fireside Chat | Bonus Episode

In a fireside chat at Permissionless IV, Mastercard’s Head of New Product Development & Innovation, Sherry, and MoonPay Co-Founder & CEO, Ivan, dissect the powerful fusion of traditional payment rails and crypto infrastructure, charting a course for the future of digital commerce.

The Multi-Rail Strategy

  • "We've always been a multi-rail network. We have all kinds of payments on our network... we want to always enable whatever our customers want to choose. If we weren't there for them to do that, those flows would move somewhere else."
  • "MoonPay cares a lot about things that we care about. They care about choice. They care about trust. They spend a lot of time on compliance... MoonPay really stands out for us in that regard."
  • Mastercard’s crypto strategy isn't a reactive pivot but a long-term play to remain a dominant "multi-rail" network. Integrating blockchain is a strategic necessity to meet customer demand and prevent payment flows from migrating to new, crypto-native systems.
  • The partnership with MoonPay works because of a shared focus on trust and compliance, which is non-negotiable for engaging with regulated institutions like banks. The collaboration evolved from experimental Web3 rewards programs to commercialized products driven by market demand for stablecoins.

Stablecoins: The Currency of Commerce

  • "The dream user experience is: I don't want to spend my crypto; I want to spend my stables. I want to spend my stables and have them sitting in some account getting 4% on treasuries, then get the rewards in crypto."
  • "I think stablecoins are going to be the payment method of choice for AI agents... they're obviously internet-native, so it makes sense that there needed to be an internet-native currency for these AI agents to execute on."
  • Stablecoins are becoming the star of the show, shifting from a niche asset to the core of consumer and business utility. The ideal model combines spending yield-bearing stablecoins via a card while earning rewards in volatile crypto assets.
  • Beyond human use, stablecoins are positioned as the native currency for AI agents. As AI transitions from a "read-only" tool to an executor of tasks, it will require an internet-native currency to transact, with stablecoins being the logical choice.

Wallets as the New Bank Accounts

  • "My whole take is over time, more and more transactions are going to settle over blockchains... I really think wallets are the new communication layer for money."
  • Crypto wallets are evolving from simple asset holders into the "next-generation version of a bank account." The goal is to embed functionality like receiving salary deposits, paying bills, and accessing global financial instruments directly within a non-custodial wallet.
  • This evolution particularly benefits users in emerging markets with high inflation or unstable currencies, giving them direct access to USD-denominated assets. With 75% of the world's 1.2 billion unbanked owning smartphones, they can leapfrog traditional banking systems entirely.

Key Takeaways:

  • The convergence of crypto and TradFi is moving past experimentation and into commercialization, driven by real user demand. While crypto-natives are the first adopters, the real prize is abstracting away the complexity for mainstream users and businesses, particularly in emerging markets.
  • Invisible Rails are the Endgame: The winner isn't the platform that forces users to understand blockchain, but the one that makes it invisible. Mainstream adoption will arrive when consumers use stablecoins without even knowing it, powered by seamless wallet and card integrations.
  • Wallets Are the New Financial Hub: Wallets are transcending simple storage to become full-fledged financial platforms. The next wave of innovation will focus on embedding neobank-like features (direct deposits, bill pay) into non-custodial wallets.
  • AI Will Run on Stablecoins: The rise of autonomous AI agents executing commercial tasks will create massive demand for a programmable, internet-native currency. Stablecoins are the clear frontrunner to become the default payment rail for this new automated economy.

For further insights and detailed discussions, watch the full podcast: Link

This episode reveals how the partnership between Mastercard and MoonPay is building the financial plumbing for a future where stablecoins are the default currency for global commerce and autonomous AI agents.

Mastercard's Enduring Crypto Strategy

  • Shar, representing Mastercard, clarifies that their involvement in crypto is not a recent development but a long-term strategic play built over several years. This strategy is rooted in the core philosophy of providing customer choice.
  • Mastercard views blockchain as another essential "rail" in its multi-rail network, which already includes traditional card payments, push payments, and mobile money wallets.
  • Shar emphasizes that their goal is to be present wherever their customers—consumers, merchants, and businesses—want to transact.
  • This long-standing commitment has resulted in commercialized products that leverage blockchain and stablecoins, signaling deep institutional confidence in the technology's future.

MoonPay's Evolution into a Core Infrastructure Provider

  • Ivan from MoonPay outlines their mission to onboard the world to crypto, positioning non-custodial wallets as the next-generation bank account accessible to anyone with an internet connection. Stablecoins are now at the center of this vision.
  • MoonPay is evolving from a consumer-facing on-ramp to an infrastructure provider, offering APIs and white-label embedded solutions—customizable products that businesses can integrate and brand as their own.
  • The acquisition of a company called Iron was a key move to provide developer-first tools, allowing any business to spin up virtual accounts and instantly convert funds into stablecoins.
  • Ivan's perspective shows a strategic shift toward becoming the foundational B2B layer for the next wave of crypto-enabled financial applications.

The Anatomy of a Successful Crypto-Enterprise Partnership

  • The discussion highlights why the MoonPay-Mastercard collaboration has succeeded where many others have failed. The partnership began with experimental projects like "Web3 Priceless" rewards on-chain before moving to core financial products.
  • Ivan points to shared values around choice and trust as a key factor.
  • Shar provides a crucial insight from the enterprise perspective, stressing that MoonPay's rigorous focus on compliance and regulation is paramount. This makes them a viable partner for Mastercard and its network of regulated banks.
  • Shar states, "Moonpay really stands out in that for us in that regard." This underscores that for crypto firms, a robust compliance framework is a powerful competitive advantage when seeking enterprise adoption.

Identifying the Primary Beneficiaries: From Crypto-Natives to Emerging Markets

  • Shar explains that while crypto-natives are the initial users, the most profound impact will be on individuals and businesses in emerging markets facing high inflation and currency instability.
  • The core utility is providing access to a stable, USD-denominated asset that can be easily held and spent.
  • This addresses a critical real-world need for financial stability, moving beyond speculative use cases.
  • Strategic Implication: The largest immediate market for stablecoin adoption may not be in developed nations but in regions where traditional financial systems are failing their users.

The Intersection of AI, Commerce, and Stablecoins

  • Ivan presents a forward-looking thesis on the convergence of AI and crypto, identifying stablecoins as the native currency for the coming AI economy.
  • He defines AI Agents as autonomous software programs that can perform tasks on a user's behalf. Ivan predicts these agents will move from a "read-only" phase (analyzing data) to an "execution" phase (transacting via APIs).
  • Ivan asserts, "I think stable coins are going to be the payment method of choice of AI agents."
  • For Crypto AI Investors & Researchers: This is a critical insight. The growth of autonomous AI will directly fuel demand for programmable, on-chain money. The infrastructure being built today to provide seamless API access to stablecoins is positioned to become the financial plumbing for the AI-driven economy.

Mastercard's Strategic Imperative for Stablecoin Adoption

  • Shar frames Mastercard's push into stablecoins as both an offensive and defensive strategic necessity. It's driven by clear customer demand, the potential to expand their Total Addressable Market (TAM), and accelerating regulatory clarity.
  • Mastercard is already using its Multi-Token Network—a private blockchain for testing tokenized assets with financial institutions—to tokenize bank deposits.
  • This proactive move is designed to ensure these new financial flows remain within Mastercard's ecosystem rather than migrating to competing platforms.
  • This demonstrates that for established financial giants, adopting blockchain technology is imperative to maintaining their central role in global finance.

From Clunky to Invisible: The Future of Stablecoin User Experience

  • The conversation addresses the current friction in using crypto and outlines a future where these transactions are seamless and integrated into daily life.
  • Shar notes that backend settlement in stablecoins between issuers and merchants is already happening without the end-user's knowledge.
  • The ideal user experience is envisioned as spending stablecoins from a wallet that simultaneously earns yield, with rewards paid out in crypto.
  • Ivan uses a powerful analogy, stating that "wallets are the new communication layer for money," poised to upgrade legacy financial rails that were not built for the internet age.

The Grand Vision: Tokenizing the World's Assets

  • Ivan concludes with his broader thesis that stablecoins are the foundational layer for the eventual tokenization of all real-world assets, including stocks, bonds, and commodities.
  • He argues that a lack of regulatory clarity has been the primary bottleneck, and as that resolves, on-chain yield generation and access to tokenized securities will become the next major waves of innovation.
  • This is especially transformative for users in emerging markets, who could gain unprecedented access to global financial assets like tokenized US stocks.
  • Actionable Insight: The infrastructure being built for stablecoins today is the precursor to a fully tokenized financial system. Investors should recognize that platforms mastering stablecoin liquidity and compliance are well-positioned to dominate the future market for tokenized real-world assets.

Conclusion

This discussion reveals that the convergence of traditional finance and crypto is creating the rails for a new economy. For investors and researchers, the key takeaway is that the infrastructure enabling seamless stablecoin transactions is the foundational layer for future commerce, AI agent economies, and the tokenization of all assets.

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