Mastercard’s Head of Crypto Europe, Christian Rau, discusses the company’s growing interest in cryptocurrency as a potential payment technology. While emphasizing that a complete transformation is not imminent, Rau highlights Mastercard’s commitment to incorporating crypto into its financial system through on-ramp and off-ramp services on cards. The firm acknowledges the current focus on safe and compliant payments, with crypto playing a role within this framework. Despite lacking immediate plans to build a blockchain, Rau acknowledges the possibility of considering such development if it aligns with their needs. Meanwhile, Rau reveals Mastercard’s increasing engagement with crypto firms like MetaMask, Bitget, MoonPay, Kraken, enabling merchants to accept cryptocurrency payments. He further notes the complexity associated with non-custodial wallets, highlighting recent collaborations as examples of this strategy’s progress.