Mastercard, a global leader in financial payments, announced at CES 2023 the launch of their web3 incubator: a new program designed to help artists engage with fans through innovative mediums.
Mastercard recently aligned with Polygon, the scaling blockchain powered by Ethereum that’s making big waves in the Web 2.0 world. Recently, Polygon has partnered with Starbucks for its Odyssey digital rewards program and Disney for its accelerator program as well as seen major fashion labels such as Prada and Adidas launch NFT projects on their blockchain.
Joining the incubator requires artists to know how to mint NFTs, represent themselves in virtual worlds and build a community – Rajamannar notes that web3 offers great potential for creators who understand its power. “It enables them to create, own and monetize their content like never before,” he adds.
This company is expanding its reach into the digital asset space, forming alliances with crypto-focused firms to launch credit cards and partnering with Coinbase to boost the NFT ecosystem.
“This year saw us experimenting with web3 globally,” Rajamannar shared.
Mastercard and Roblox hosted the first Grammy Week in the metaverse, featuring immersive activations, in-game branding, artist meet and greets, red-carpet photo ops and more.
In the past, Mastercard’s top employees have expressed their enthusiasm for crypto.
Grace Berkery, Mastercard’s Director of Startup Engagement, noted at Benzinga’s Future of Crypto event in December that once momentum for an institution is built up it can be hard to get them to pivot. Her conclusion: if institutions enter the space they’re likely to stay there.
