Mastercard, Coinbase, and the Battle for the Digital Dollar

Mastercard’s Billion-Dollar Blockchain Bet

According to Fortune, Mastercard is reportedly in advanced negotiations to acquire Zerohash, a blockchain infrastructure provider, in a deal valued between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. If finalized, the purchase would mark Mastercard’s most ambitious foray yet into blockchain-based payments and stablecoin technology.

The potential acquisition would surpass Stripe’s $1.1 billion purchase of Bridge last year, signaling intensifying competition among traditional payment giants seeking to secure their place in the next generation of digital settlement systems. Mastercard has not commented on the reported talks, calling them “market speculation.”

Founded in 2017, Zerohash provides infrastructure for major financial institutions including Interactive Brokers, Franklin Templeton, Stripe, and BlackRock’s BUIDL Fund.

The company recently raised $104 million in a Series D-2 round led by Interactive Brokers and Morgan Stanley, which valued it at $1 billion. It also announced a strategic partnership with Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade last month, enabling clients to trade cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.

This move comes amid renewed growth in the stablecoin market, fueled by regulatory clarity under the GENIUS Act, which introduced new standards for issuing and managing U.S. dollar–backed tokens.

Data from CoinGlass shows the total market capitalization of stablecoins has climbed by nearly $100 billion in 2025, reaching $312 billion, with forecasts suggesting it could more than double to $750 billion by 2026.

Industry analysts view Mastercard’s rumored Zerohash acquisition as a signal that legacy payment firms are no longer just experimenting with blockchain, they’re preparing to operate at its core. “In the same way digital tokens transformed Wall Street, stablecoins are now redefining money transfers,” said Chris Miglino, co-founder of DNA Fund.

Coinbase Pushes Back on Bank Fears

As traditional finance steps further into blockchain, crypto-native firms are fighting a different battle, this time against skepticism from the banking sector.

Coinbase is challenging a growing narrative among U.S. banking associations that stablecoins pose a systemic risk to the traditional financial system. In a statement this week, Faryar Shirzad, the company’s Chief Policy Officer, dismissed such claims as “misguided,” arguing that most stablecoin activity occurs outside the United States and “expands the reach of the dollar rather than competing with local banks.”

Several banking groups have urged lawmakers to restrict the issuance of interest-bearing stablecoins, warning they could divert deposits away from U.S. banks. Coinbase, however, says the data tells a different story: the majority of stablecoin demand comes from international users, particularly in emerging markets where U.S. dollar–backed tokens act as a hedge against currency volatility and inflation.

The exchange estimates that nearly two-thirds of all stablecoin transactions happen within decentralized finance (DeFi) networks rather than through banks, forming a parallel infrastructure that complements — not replaces — the traditional system. “Viewing stablecoins as a threat misses the point,” Shirzad said. “They enhance the dollar’s global presence and create competitive advantages the U.S. should embrace.”

Even under scenarios projecting global stablecoin circulation reaching $5 trillion within a decade, Coinbase argues that the majority of that value would remain outside the U.S. banking system, serving as a tool for cross-border payments and on-chain settlements rather than displacing domestic deposits.