Wirex Becomes World’s First Crypto-Native Platform to Secure Mastercard Principal Membership

Leading payments platform Wirex today announced their partnership with Mastercard, as they become the first cryptocurrency-native platform to secure Mastercard principal membership. The news further solidifies Wirex’s vision to bring cryptocurrency to the mainstream with the support of Mastercard, the renowned global payment technology company, by giving Wirex additional functionality and control.

Principal membership will enable Wirex to issue payment cards directly, offering even more convenience, reduced costs and faster transactions on a platform that is striving to make all currencies equal. The partnership gives Wirex the opportunity to continue improving its cutting-edge services, offering customers the ability to instantly buy, hold, exchange and spend multiple traditional and cryptocurrencies at the best in-market rates, within one platform.

Wirex is one of the few crypto-friendly companies that is a UK regulated e-money institution. Already serving 3 million customers across 130 countries, the company was the first in the world to offer a contactless Wirex debit card, bringing cryptocurrency into everyday life by instantly converting it into traditional currency, with the ability to spend in-store at over 54 million locations around the world where Mastercard is accepted. Wirex also introduced the world’s first cryptocurrency rewards program, Cryptoback™, automatically giving customers up to 1.5% back in Bitcoin for every purchase made in-store.

Pavel Matveev, CEO and co-founder of Wirex, discusses how pivotal this move is for Wirex. “Wirex is proud to have become a principal member of Mastercard. It has always been our vision to empower everyone to enjoy the advantages of a world where all currencies are equal, and this membership is a step in the right direction.” Matveev believes this is just the start of a series of exciting announcements for Wirex, “we’ve been working hard to develop a cheaper, faster and safer platform, and we’re excited to announce some revolutionary advancements over the next few months that will change the fintech and crypto spaces forever.”

Edoardo Volta, Head of Fintech, Mastercard UK & Ireland, added, “We are excited to be starting this new relationship with Wirex, offering consumers further choice and flexibility in the way they pay. We look forward to supporting Wirex in the delivery and growth of their innovative payment solutions.”

Wirex has been growing rapidly over the past 18 months, with a successful expansion into the vast APAC market, release of their native Wirex Token (WXT), and office openings in Japan, Singapore, Atlanta, Dallas, Toronto and Dublin. Today’s announcement marks the start of a new phase at Wirex that will revolutionise the fintech and cryptocurrency spaces. Later this year, the company plans to launch a next-generation of Wirex card for customers in the EEA region, with game-changing features including additional currencies, free international ATM withdrawals, sky-high limits and next-to-no fees, that will ensure it has a significant advantage over its competitors. Wirex also has plans to start issuing corporate cards for Wirex Business clients in the next few months, which will ensure Wirex continues to innovate in the space and make digital currency more accessible for the mass market.