Mastercard is in talks to acquire crypto firm Zerohash for $1.5-2 billion, according to a Fortune report, citing sources. This follows a previous Fortune report that the payments firm planned to acquire stablecoin infrastructure startup BVNK for a similar amount, but apparently BVNK is now in exclusive negotiations with Coinbase.
While there’s some overlap between Zerohash and BVNK, they are quite different. BVNK is a dedicated payments firm, making it a more natural fit with Mastercard. By contrast, Zerohash has a range of solutions including crypto brokerage, tokenization, and payments. Its highest-profile partnerships are in brokerage, where it provides the crypto infrastructure for Interactive Brokers’ crypto offering and the soon-to-launch solution for Morgan Stanley’s e-Trade. On the payments side, it offers on/off-ramps, payin/payout services, and remittances.
Zerohash was founded in the US, whereas BVNK is headquartered in the UK. As a US firm, Zerohash has its own licenses to operate in 51 states. In August BVNK partnered with Paxos to take advantage of its US licenses. Mastercard has a tendency to integrate acquisitions rather than operate standalone entities, so it likely wouldn’t need the US licenses.
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