Circle and Mastercard Announce Partnership, The Next Phase of the Crypto Industry Belongs to Payments

Written by: @benfoxrubin, Mastercard Translated by: Peggy, BlockBeats

Editor’s Note: As the scale of stablecoins continues to grow, blockchain is gradually shifting from a speculative narrative to a financial infrastructure. Recently, Mastercard launched the Crypto Partner Program, collaborating with multiple organizations including Circle to promote the practical application of digital assets. This also reflects a reevaluation of blockchain’s role within traditional payment systems.

In Kash Razzaghi, Chief Business Officer of Circle,’s view, the true adoption of stablecoins will not appear as “cryptocurrency products,” but as an invisible financial “pipeline” embedded within payment systems. This article discusses the path of stablecoins from being a trading tool to becoming a payment infrastructure, and why traditional financial institutions are actively participating in this transformation.

Below is the original text:

Circle’s most well-known product is its stablecoin USDC. Currently, the circulation of USDC has exceeded $77 billion, making it one of the largest stablecoins globally. But Circle’s goals go beyond that.

The company is working to build a comprehensive infrastructure to drive blockchain-based payments and financial services toward mass adoption. Specifically, Circle provides developer tools, launched the Circle Payments Network, and created its own blockchain, Arc, to offer businesses blockchain-based payment capabilities and financial functions, enabling almost any company to access on-chain financial systems.

Kash Razzaghi, Chief Business Officer (responsible for partnerships and strategy at Circle), said: “We are building what is called an internet finance platform, aimed at truly promoting and accelerating the flow of funds on the chain.”

In his view, migrating financial infrastructure onto blockchain can make fund flows faster, cheaper, and more transparent. However, he also pointed out that reshaping the entire payment ecosystem cannot be done by any single organization alone. Therefore, Circle is collaborating with multiple companies, including Mastercard, to expand the global use and acceptance of stablecoins. This week, Mastercard announced the new Crypto Partner Program, with Circle as a member.

Razzaghi added: “This requires participation from the entire ecosystem. Mastercard’s involvement brings significant credibility to what this technology can develop into and how the industry might evolve in the future.”

Kash Razzaghi (Circle’s COO): When stablecoins and this entire technology truly reach mainstream adoption, they will become the underlying infrastructure like “water and electricity pipelines,” used by people without even realizing they are holding stablecoins.

Shortly after returning from the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, Razzaghi was interviewed by Mastercard News Center. During Davos, he engaged with many professionals from the finance and financial services sectors, aiming to attract more institutions to join the growing blockchain ecosystem.

The following Q&A has been edited for clarity and brevity.

How do you view the current volatile crypto market?

Market fluctuations are expected. In fact, throughout most of crypto history, speculation has been the main driver.

But what excites us is that the industry is shifting from speculation to infrastructure. Of course, trading and speculation will not disappear entirely, and that’s not the main focus. The key is that the industry is evolving: from a speculative market to a financial infrastructure.

Crypto markets have experienced boom periods and more turbulent phases. These cycles have always existed. If some people exit, new participants will enter—this is how the market operates.

What was the main focus of blockchain discussions at Davos this year?

This year’s Davos discussions almost all centered around infrastructure.

People discussed how blockchain technology and digital assets can solve real-world problems, or how they can improve capital flow, value storage, and access to financial systems.

Davos this year felt very optimistic. As regulations gradually pave the way for institutional participation, the advantages of blockchain infrastructure are becoming more apparent. The focus has shifted from speculation to:

• How to transfer billions or even trillions of dollars instantly, securely, and at low cost using this technology
• How to upgrade a financial system infrastructure that has seen little fundamental change in the past 75 years

It is widely believed that this transformation will benefit the entire ecosystem. Whether it’s financial infrastructure companies, market participants, or financial service providers, everyone can leverage this technology to upgrade their operations and offer better services.

For a long time, the narrative was: Will blockchain replace banks? Will it replace card networks? Will it replace traditional finance?

But the reality is different.

What’s truly exciting now is that the discussion has shifted to how to upgrade and collaborate within the existing financial system. Banks, financial institutions, traditional exchanges, and card networks are embracing this technology because everyone expects: transaction costs will approach zero, and the speed of fund movement will significantly increase.

If the financial system is to be upgraded, what does that mean for Mastercard? How can both parties collaborate to achieve mutual benefits?

Essentially, what does Mastercard offer?

Trust.

You have built a global trust network. I personally have a Mastercard. When I swipe my card, merchants feel confident because they know the funds will be received—thanks to Mastercard’s backing.

In my view, the importance of trust will never disappear.

Mastercard’s role in this ecosystem is not only to maintain this trust network but also to: provide more advanced transaction technology, make payments simpler, promote financial inclusion, reduce intermediaries, lower friction costs, and over time, further decrease transaction costs.

For Circle, the benefit is the widespread adoption of stablecoins and digital assets.

We believe that future fund flows will increasingly occur on-chain. We think that, in the long run, on-chain capital movement will be more efficient.

Of course, achieving this requires many things, such as infrastructure development, regulatory frameworks, and compliance systems.

We are not fully there yet. But as Mastercard begins to build on-chain products and offer on-chain services to its clients, it will greatly accelerate the adoption of stablecoins.

What are the main current use cases for stablecoins?

There are three main scenarios.

Trading and Investment

The largest current use case for stablecoins remains in crypto asset trading and investment.

If you invest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other digital assets, using USDC as a trading medium is very convenient. You can switch between assets at any time and keep your funds in stable-value assets when needed.

Payments (especially cross-border payments)

The second scenario is payments, particularly cross-border payments. If you need to transfer funds from one country to another, whether for corporate transfers or personal remittances, stablecoins are a highly efficient method.

Transferring funds on the blockchain can: reduce intermediaries, lower fees, and shorten settlement times from days or weeks to seconds or minutes.

We’ve seen nearly every industry conducting large-scale fund transfers. Even a large institution can transfer from Singapore to New York using stablecoins, without being limited by banking hours.

In the future, stablecoin payments will not only be used in cross-border scenarios but will expand to nearly all payment fields.

Value Storage

The third scenario is value storage.

This need is especially prominent in countries with severe currency devaluation, such as Iran (my birthplace), Venezuela, and Argentina.

In these high-inflation countries, residents often distrust their local currency and prefer to hold USD assets as a hedge. Stablecoins provide a digital USD store of value.

We believe that the demand for payments and value storage will drive the stablecoin market size far beyond today’s levels.

When do you think stablecoins will achieve mainstream adoption?

Some believe that once stablecoins and blockchain technology truly reach mainstream, they will become the underlying infrastructure. That is, people will hold and send USD without realizing they are actually using stablecoins.

We often use an analogy: when you visit a website, the URL starts with HTTP. Most people don’t understand HTTP technology; they just use the internet.

Similarly, stablecoins may eventually become invisible on the chain, with on-chain finance becoming a foundational infrastructure that users hardly perceive.

Your career spans multiple industries. How does this help your current work?

There is no such thing as a “standard career path.” Career development requires luck, timing, and accumulated experience.

Looking back at my career, it’s quite diverse: fashion, sports social platforms, video distribution, and crypto.

But the common themes are: entrepreneurial spirit, market expansion skills (go-to-market), business development, and sales.

I’ve always enjoyed building things from scratch and participating in projects that can impact many people.

Six years ago, when I joined Circle, I wasn’t particularly “crypto-native” or an expert in crypto. But once you truly understand the potential of this technology, you become motivated by it and develop a sense of mission.