Mastercard Patents Blockchain Tech For Instant Payments

By Jon Buck

Mastercard has recently filed a patent for instantaneous payments using Blockchain technology. The patent appeared in the US Patent and Trademark data system dated the 9th of this month.

The patent makes clear that Mastercard intends to use Blockchain technology to create a system where merchants can receive guaranteed instantaneous payment rather than waiting for multiple days before credit card transactions can be verified and then paid by card issuers. According to the filing:

“Thus, there is a need for a technical solution where a payment transaction can be guaranteed in a manner that is readily verifiable by an acquiring financial institution and/or merchant…By enabling the use of the guarantee with multiple payment instruments and transaction types, the guarantee may be used in more situations with a higher convenience to both consumers and merchants, which may result in merchants receiving instantaneous, guaranteed payment while maintaining a high level of consumer convenience.”

Pro Blockchain, anti-Bitcoin
Mastercard has already shown a strong interest in the technology, filing previous patents and announcing other Blockchain related solutions. However, the company has also been ardently opposed to Bitcoin, with the CEO even making disparaging remarks against the cryptocurrency.

This most recent announcement only highlights the level of intensely negative feelings toward Bitcoin among institutionalized finance departments, all while embracing the technology it is built on.