Mastercard Onboards Ava Labs as Part of Start Path Crypto Program

American payment services firm Mastercard has onboarded Avalanche blockchain creator Ava Labs as part of its Start Path Crypto Program, designed to explore and solve how blockchain technology can democratize use cases for people and businesses worldwide.

As announced by Ava Labs, the blockchain startup will join a host of other crypto innovators to redesign the value-added services and use cases that blockchain technology can be integrated for use in solving real-world problems. Mastercard will back innovations that will make Distributed Ledger Technologies safer and easier for people, businesses, and developers to innovate.

“The past year has seen incredible momentum in the world of crypto assets, from the explosion of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) to the piloting of central bank digital currencies in countries across the world. As we look to what’s next, it’s all about finding new use cases and problems blockchain technology can solve for now and in the future,” said Jess Turner, executive vice president of New Digital Infrastructure & Fintech at Mastercard, “Whether it’s enhancing financial freedom or a new value-added service using stablecoins, we believe our new cohorts of Start Path crypto and digital assets companies combined with Mastercard’s expertise in the space will accelerate access to new ways to pay and prioritize choice for consumers and businesses.”

Rather than compete against blockchain technology, many startups feel threatened by the growing technology. Ava Labs’s President, John Wu, said his team is enthusiastic about working with developers within the Start Path Crypto Program. 

“Mastercard is setting an example for leaders across all industries on how to embrace, rather than combat innovation,” says John Wu, President of Ava Labs. “We look forward to working with projects and partners in the Start Path program to accelerate the positive impacts blockchain technology will have for individuals and institutions across the world.” 

The underlying focus of the partnership is centred on scaling blockchain technology for global enterprise adoption, and Ava Labs with its unique design of the Avalanche Blockchain, is a great addition to this cause.

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