MasterCard announced Thursday its acquisition of the cryptocurrency intelligence company CipherTrace in an effort to strengthen security around cryptocurrency transactions.
The goal of the acquisition is to assist businesses with understanding the risks that come with digital assets as well as how to manage them while meeting regulations. The deal is the latest example of MasterCard’s growing presence in the crypto ring. They have recently struck deals with bitcoin service providers like Uphold, Gemini and Bitpay to create crypto cards and programs to support broadening blockchain technology and NFTs.
“Digital assets have the potential to reimagine commerce, from everyday acts like paying and getting paid to transforming economies, making them more inclusive and efficient,” said Ajay Bhalla, president, Cyber & Intelligence at Mastercard. “With the rapid growth of the digital asset ecosystem comes the need to ensure it is trusted and safe. Our aim is to build upon the complementary capabilities of Mastercard and CipherTrace to do just this.”
Today we announced our agreement to acquire @CipherTrace.
Together, our technology, #AI & #cyber capabilities will allow stakeholders to leverage solutions to protect their customers & comply with regulations as they build their own offerings. https://t.co/Lv6BgykOwM
— Mastercard News (@MastercardNews) September 9, 2021
What is CipherTrace?
CipherTrace is a leader in the field of crypto-security, providing insight into over 900 cryptocurrencies. Their goal is to assist customers with enhancing security and monitoring fraud around crypto-related programs. They have worked with some of the largest banks and financial institutions in the world in helping secure and manage digital assets.
Dave Jevans, CipherTrace CEO, elaborated on his company’s role and the pairing with MasterCard.
“We help companies – whether they are banks or cryptocurrency exchanges, government regulators or law enforcement to keep the crypto economy safe,” said Jevans. “Our two companies share this vision to provide security and trust throughout the ecosystem. We are thrilled to join the Mastercard family to scale CipherTrace’s reach across the globe.”
The terms of the agreement have not yet been disclosed, and the deal is expected to be complete by the end of the year.
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