Mastercard and Visa are not threatened by the rise of stablecoins, largely because their dominance is built on trust, credit, and consumer protection rather than just payment speed or cost. While stablecoins offer fast, programmable, and always-on settlement, they lack the fraud protection, chargebacks, dispute resolution, and credit features that consumers have relied on for decades through card networks. These protections, combined with rewards such as cash back and airline miles, have made Visa and Mastercard deeply embedded in everyday spending habits.

Rather than being displaced, the card networks are increasingly integrating stablecoins into their infrastructure, using them as behind-the-scenes settlement rails while preserving the familiar consumer experience. Until stablecoins can replicate the full trust and credit layer that underpins traditional card payments, they are unlikely to achieve mass consumer adoption—leaving Visa and Mastercard firmly in control of the payments ecosystem for the foreseeable future.