Mastercard says it's acquiring stablecoin startup BVNK in $1.8 billion bet on future of payments

<p><a href="/quotes/MA/">Mastercard</a> on Tuesday <a href="https://investor.mastercard.com/investor-news/investor-news-details/2026/Mastercard-to-Acquire-BVNK-to-Connect-On-Chain-Payments-and-Fiat-Rails/default.aspx">said</a> it agreed to acquire <a href="https://bvnk.com/">BVNK</a>, a London-based stablecoin infrastructure firm, for up to $1.8 billion. It's the payment network's biggest bet yet on the mainstreaming of digital currencies.</p>
<p>The deal includes $300 million in payments that are contingent on BVNK hitting certain performance metrics and is expected to close this year, Mastercard said in a <a href="https://investor.mastercard.com/investor-news/investor-news-details/2026/Mastercard-to-Acquire-BVNK-to-Connect-On-Chain-Payments-and-Fiat-Rails/default.aspx">statement</a>.</p>
<p>The acquisition gives Mastercard, the world's second-largest payment network after <a href="/quotes/V/">Visa</a>, the ability to connect traditional payment rails with emerging blockchain-based systems. That will allow Mastercard to enmesh itself in payments systems involving stablecoins and tokenized deposits as they gain adoption in coming years.</p>
<p>"We expect that most financial institutions and fintechs will in time provide digital currency services," Mastercard Chief Product Officer Jorn Lambert said in his firm's release.</p>
<p>BVNK, which was founded in 2021 and told CNBC last year that its <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/10/09/biti-bvnk-stablecoin-banks-crypto.html">valuation was above $750 million</a>, says its platform currently supports transactions on all major blockchain networks in more than 130 countries.</p>
<p>Stablecoin startups have been a hot commodity since the reelection of President Donald Trump in late 2024 ushered in a new era of crypto-friendly regulation.</p>
<p>BVNK reportedly entertained <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/11/12/coinbase-ends-acquisition-talks-for-u-k-based-bvnk-fortune">takeover interest</a> from <a href="/quotes/COIN/">Coinbase</a> as well as Mastercard, and Mastercard had been <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/mastercard-poised-buy-crypto-firm-zerohash-nearly-2-billion-fortune-reports-2025-10-29/">interested</a> in acquiring a different crypto company, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/23/startup-zerohash-raises-104million-morgan-stanley-sofi-apollo.html">Zerohash</a>, earlier this year.</p>