Mastercard deepens its foray into crypto sector; Bitcoin & altcoins boom to eye $2.8T valuation

• Mastercard to let banks and merchants integrate crypto payments options into their products.
• Cryptocurrency markets added gains after the news became public.
• Continued bullish momentum could lead the digital asset market to top $2.8 trillion.

BENGALURU (Coinchapter.com) – Cryptocurrency markets moved up on the news surrounding Mastercard greenlighting digital asset payment integration for banks and merchants. Uptrend resumed on Sunday with digital assets moving north above the $2.5-trillion mark. The payment giant’s significant adoption boost opened the doors for the ascent to $2.8 trillion.

The Missouri-based multinational financial services corporation has been in the news for its pro-crypto stance for quite some time. Monday’s update followed the initial announcement of supporting virtual currency payments that the firm made in February 2021.

Related: Mastercard To Offer Cryptocurrency Support On Its Network

Mastercard Okays Crypto Services Offerings

As per the latest reports, the global payments facilitating firm allows thousands of banks and millions of merchants to integrate Bitcoin and digital asset payment options on its network. The scope encompasses cryptocurrency wallets, credit and debit cards. Plus, loyalty programs allow the conversion of flight/hotel reward points to BTC.

“We want to offer all of our partners the ability to more easily add crypto services to whatever it is they’re doing.

 Sherri Haymond, Mastercard’s executive vice president of digital partnerships told CNBC

The digital currency community hailed the news as a significant milestone for widespread cryptocurrency adoption.

Mastercard has issued ~1b cards.

They're about to enable #Bitcoin services across their global network.

It's probably nothing…

— Bitcoin Archive (@BTC_Archive) October 25, 2021

https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz/status/1452810315566129157

Mastercard opted to join hands with Bakkt to offer custodial services for the massive crypto services rollout.

 Related: Mastercard Launching World’s First CBDC-Linked Card In Bahamas

“Our partners, be they banks, fintechs or merchants, can offer their customers the ability to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrency through an integration with the Baktt platform.”

added Ms. Haymond

The partnership between the two firms is also set to redefine the customer rewards system, especially in the food and hospitality space. According to Bakkt CEO Gavin Michael, restaurants would offer Bitcoin rewards over traditional loyalty points. In addition, customers would convert existing reward points to digital assets, generating a passive income stream.

“We’re lowering the barriers to entry, allowing people to take something like your rewards points and trade them into crypto. It’s an easy way to get going because you’re not using cash, you’re putting something that’s an idle asset sitting on your balance sheet, and we’re allowing you to put in to work.”

noted Bakkt boss Gavin Michael

Cryptocurrency Market Eyeing $2.8T Valuation

Mastercard’s latest pro-crypto move unleashed bulls built on Sunday’s momentum to push the aggregated digital asset market towards $2.8 trillion. Moreover, virtual currency prices have followed an Ascending Channel pattern since October beginning.

After testing the lower trendline of the technical setup, buyers placed aggressive long bets. The switch in sentiment infused $260 billion in crypto markets. The bullish sentiment looks to linger on with relative strength (RSI), eyeing further upward moves.

Bulls have set their targets on the $2.8 trillion mark, which coincides with the upper trendline of the existing Ascending Channel setup. The climb upwards seems steep, but a breakout will become imminent after prolonged consolidation.