Coinbase to power stablecoin-backed cards for Marqeta customers
Marqeta is extending its six-year tie-up with Coinbase so business clients can issue cards funded by customers' stablecoin balances, with Coinbase handling custody and conversions.
Coinbase and payments technology firm Marqeta are broadening a partnership that dates back six years, in a move that will let businesses offer payment cards funded by customers' stablecoin holdings. The companies announced the expansion in a release on Friday.
Under the arrangement, Coinbase will hold the stablecoins and manage conversions between digital assets and traditional currencies. Marqeta will take on card issuing and payment processing, while Coinbase's Base blockchain supplies the onchain settlement layer behind the service.
The offering targets Marqeta's business customers, a base that spans both crypto-native and conventional companies. According to the two firms, cardholders will be able to spend their stablecoins at the "millions of merchants" that accept cards, and businesses will be able to top up their card programmes around the clock rather than within banking hours.
"Coinbase is enabling businesses to move money with the speed and efficiency they require," said Alec Lovett, Head of Infrastructure Products at Coinbase. He added that pairing the exchange's stablecoin payment rails with Marqeta's issuing and processing capabilities would deliver real-time global transactions aimed at modern consumers and businesses.
Existing card tie-up
The new service builds on earlier collaboration. Coinbase selected Marqeta as the processor behind its US debit card offering in October 2020, a product that let customers spend crypto including USDC and collect crypto rewards on spending.
The companies did not disclose fees for the expanded programme, a launch date, or which stablecoins would be supported at the outset. Those details are likely to matter to corporate clients weighing whether to fund card programmes with tokenised cash rather than pre-funded fiat balances.
The announcement places both firms in the expanding segment of the payments market that links stablecoin liquidity to conventional card rails, a space where issuers and processors are competing to offer businesses faster settlement and always-on funding.
Source: The Block