John Timoney, head of strategic partnerships at Rain, anticipates stablecoin-based cards might soon represent a double-digit share of all card transactions in certain Latin American markets. He noted that retail spending with stablecoin cards has surged by approximately 105% to 106% over the past year during a panel discussion at Consensus Miami 2026. These cards allow users to spend stablecoins like tether (USDT$0.9997) and USD Coin (USDC) directly from digital wallets for everyday purchases, available in both physical and virtual forms.
Rain has established itself as a Mastercard Principal Member, facilitating credit and prepaid cards on the Mastercard network. Collaboratively, Rain and Mastercard are investigating on-chain settlement for specific card program flows using regulated stablecoins. Timoney clarified that Rain’s goal is not to supplant existing card networks but to make stablecoin balances functional via established networks with extensive merchant reach.
“The card networks have accumulated hundreds of millions of merchants over decades,” Timoney remarked, “Rain did not aim to reinvent the wheel.” He added that spending patterns are increasingly indistinguishable from standard card usage, as users engage in typical purchasing activities across various merchant categories.
Ray Hernandez, senior vice president of business development at Consensys, pointed out during the same panel that despite their growth trajectory, stablecoin cards still represent less than 1% of global card spend. Timoney emphasized Latin America as a primary market for adoption, with stablecoin cards being utilized across custodial and non-custodial wallets, crypto exchanges, and products abstracting the stablecoin experience from users.
Transactions often result in merchants receiving fiat currency, distinguishing these activities from direct crypto push payments that require managing crypto settlement and volatility directly. Behind-the-scenes changes are notable as well; Rain states that stablecoin settlement enables card programs to settle transactions on weekends and holidays, reducing trapped capital by more than 40% in some instances.
Traditional card programs typically pre-fund or borrow during banking closures, whereas stablecoins operate beyond bank cut-off times. This flexibility can enhance rewards and overall card economics, Timoney noted.
Mastercard is advancing its involvement with stablecoin payments, having recently integrated Binance, PayPal, and Ripple into its blockchain payment initiatives and acquiring stablecoin infrastructure firm BVNK for up to $1.8 billion earlier this year.
Christian Rau, Mastercard’s senior vice president of digital assets and blockchain, emphasized that mainstream adoption hinges on making the technology invisible to consumers. “The norm is a card on your iPhone or Android, where the transaction happens seamlessly,” Rau explained. The consumer experience should focus not on being an onchain payment but rather enabling real-time spending with expected network protections.
Hernandez highlighted the need for easier access points and abstracted fees to advance further adoption, noting that current crypto card users are predominantly crypto-native individuals who already manage assets on-chain. MetaMask is expanding its self-custody strategy through cards developed in partnership with Mastercard and Baanx, allowing spending from a self-custodial wallet with asset conversion into fiat at the point of purchase.
Mark Zalan, CEO of GoMining, challenged this approach by advocating for direct bitcoin usage without converting to stablecoins or using off-ramps. He critiqued intermediaries as “little helpers” that charge transaction fees and viewed consumer protection within card transactions as a form of rent-seeking.
Timoney countered that payments encompass more than just money movement, including handling chargebacks and merchant risk. Rau agreed, noting that most consumers expect payment experiences to include interoperability, safety, and security, akin to deposit insurance and chargeback protections.