Global payments 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 payments 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 includes the Web3-focused social payments system provider Loot Bolt, Quadrata privacy startup, the blockchain-based media fintech project Take Back the Mic and the brand-oriented platform Uptop.
According to the announcement, the chosen companies will engage with bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3 as one of their main goals. “We’re welcoming a new cohort of startups to ease access to digital assets, build communities for creators and empower people to innovate for the future through Web3 technologies,” Mastercard added.
Launched in 2014, Mastercard Start Path is a six-month accelerator program that is designed to help startups in expanding and commercializing their products and services. Mastercard has supported more than 350 startups so far, with many of them achieving unicorn status, including firms such as banking provider Thought Machine, the Indian fintech startup Zeta and Razorpay.
In 2021, Mastercard launched a dedicated crypto division of Mastercard Start Path, dubbed Start Path Crypto. The crypto accelerator was established to support seed, Series A and Series B startups involved in crypto and blockchain development, offering a three-month support program.
Following the latest addition, the Start Path Crypto program has added a total of 25 crypto-related startups, including digital wallet Uphold, crypto storage firm GK8 and Emin Gün Sirer, CEO and founder of blockchain developer Ava Labs.
Related: Mastercard launches new crypto fraud protection tool
The latest news comes amid Mastercard continuing to strengthen its blockchain and crypto expertise. In mid-October, Mastercard launched a new program to allow banks to offer crypto trading capabilities and services to their customers in collaboration with Paxos. Previously, Mastercard collaborated with the Coinbase exchange to allow Coinbase NFT users to make purchases using Mastercard’s cards.
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