Mastercard Launches New Crypto Product to Help Banks Battle Fraud

The multinational financial services company – Mastercard – released a new product called “Crypto Secure.” Its main purpose is to assist banks in preventing fraudulent cases associated with digital assets.

Over the past few years, Mastercard has displayed itself as a crypto-orientated company, while some of its executives are keen proponents of the industry.

The Next Step

The payment services giant doubled down on its cryptocurrency efforts by launching a feature that could reduce scams and fraudulent cases in the sector. In a recent interview for CNBC, Ajay Bhalla – Mastercard’s President of Cyber and Intelligence Business – said the product comes by the name “Crypto Secure.”

It employs “sophisticated” artificial intelligence algorithms to detect criminal operations, which is why it will be particularly useful for banks.

Mastercard’s partner in the initiative is the blockchain startup – CipherTrace – which will provide the infrastructure for introducing the service. Speaking on the move, Bhalla said:

“The idea is that the kind of trust we provide for digital commerce transactions, we want to be able to provide the same kind of trust to digital asset transactions for consumers, banks, and merchants.”

On another note, the executive spoke about the ongoing market slump. Despite the negative trend, he remains bullish on the industry, arguing that such cycles “come and go” and it is a matter of time before a next bull run occurs:

“I think you’ve got to take the longer view that this is a big marketplace now and evolving and is probably going to be much, much bigger in the future.”

Despite the price crash and the diminishing investors’ interest, crypto scams are still a major concern. A study conducted by Chainalysis estimated that hackers had stolen around $1.4 billion worth of digital currencies between January 2022 and August 2022. Some of the most famous cases include the exploit on Harmony Bridge and the $615 million attack on Ronin Bridge.

Mastercard’s Previous Crypto Endeavors

Shortly after the beginning of 2022, the financial services firm inked a deal with the popular exchange Coinbase to promote the growth and adoption of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

A month later, Mastercard hired over 500 professionals who will aid the company’s cryptocurrency initiatives. The expansion contrasts with the dismissal spree multiple companies in the sector took, including CryptoCom, Gemini, Bybit, Huobi, and more.

In April, Mastercard struck another partnership – this time with the digital asset platform Nexo. Both parties introduced the first cryptocurrency card in Europe that allows consumers to spend without selling their possessions.

Two months ago, the payments services entity partnered with Binance, too. The team releases a prepaid crypto card in Argentina that enabled locals to settle bills in each Argentinean store or venue that accepts Mastercard.