https://img.leopedia.io/DQmajECew8LbtX9ZPkF1onNTt3Hj4R3jMeGpVEhRR4uA9n5/019a31e4-f3ec-75bd-b7b4-55f14b7726b4.jpeg 

The world has been due for a unified financial layer and this has fueled stablecoins adoption.

In August, I said in an article that Bridge could go on to be [the best acquisition over the next 5-10 years](https://inleo.io/@badbitch/bridge-could-become-the-best-acquisition-of-the-next-5-10-years?referral=badbitch).

My understanding of the situation with stablecoins has been that it will completely eat up global money flow and when a company like Stripe, got its hands on a renowned stablecoin infrastructure firm like Bridge, currently being used my multiple prominent crypto-native and TradFi players, I easily concluded that this was a smart acquisition that could really put Stripe ahead over the next decade.

Seeing how companies are actively fighting to acquire similar firms, I think that my assessment could go on to be accurate and my prediction might just play out.

>Credit card giant Mastercard is reportedly in advanced discussions to acquire stablecoin infrastructure firm Zerohash for between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, according to Fortune, which cited five unnamed sources with knowledge of the deal.

>The potential acquisition is the second this month that New York-based Mastercard is reportedly pursuing as it looks to expand its presence in the stablecoin space, along with other high-profile financial services firms.

>Mastercard and Coinbase each held late-stage talks with BVNK about acquiring the stablecoin startup for approximately $2 billion, Fortune also reported in early October.

>Either deal would outpace the $1.1 billion that payments processor Stripe paid a year ago to acquire another stablecoin startup, Bridge. – [Decrypt.co report](https://decrypt.co/346720/mastercard-talks-acquire-stablecoin-tech-zerohash-2-billion-fortune)

### The $1.8 quadrillion market, all on-chain

Most people don't understand the hype behind stablecoins and digital payments on blockchains, so I'll pull out some stats to try to paint a picture.

>Global digital payment revenue is projected to exceed $11.5 trillion in 2025, marking a growth of 15% compared to 2024.

This is more money than China's entire stock market!

>The average value of a retail cross-border transaction is estimated to be in the $600–$720 range in 2025, varying by sector, with higher averages seen in B2B payments. 

What this means is that when you're a company serving a global market, you're playing in a field that puts you in position to earn as much as $720 per transaction. 

By the way, as much as $1.8 quadrillion in payments value is processed annually, across all payments channels. 

Now to the fun parts

>Blockchain cut transaction times by up to 88%, enabling cross-border settlements in under 3 minutes in 2025.

>Blockchain-based payments cut remittance costs by 40–80%, enabling faster, cheaper global money transfers.

What all of these stats from [Coinlaw](https://coinlaw.io/global-payment-network-statistics/) tells us is that companies like Mastercard are fighting for a market that moves trillions monthly and produces also trillions in revenue.

When that market all comes on-chain, what happens is that those numbers will grow significantly because the effects of low-cost and high-speed transactions is that people (an eventually AI) will move money more frequently.

The numbers will be be quite impressive, people won't believe it.

As a result, stablecoin infrastructure firms will be highly valuable technology-solutions firms in a future where money runs almost entirely on-chain. 

Posted Using [INLEO](https://inleo.io/@badbitch/mastercard-seeks-to-acquire-stablecoin-infrastructure-firm-zero-hash-for-2-billion-7f9)