Image Credit: Shutterstock
- The Cardano Foundation is expanding institutional and payments connections through new work with Fireblocks and Mastercard.
- Fireblocks plans to add full support for Cardano Native Tokens by March 2027.
- Neither development represents a direct Mastercard integration for ADA.
The Cardano Foundation is expanding Cardano’s institutional and payments connections through new work with Fireblocks and Mastercard. Fireblocks plans to add full support for Cardano Native Tokens, while the Foundation has joined Mastercard’s Crypto Partner Program to explore payment and settlement use cases. Neither development represents a direct Mastercard integration for ADA.
Fireblocks Will Support Cardano Native Tokens
Fireblocks plans to add full support for Cardano Native Tokens, or CNTs, by March 2027. Its customers will be able to custody, send and receive supported Cardano Native Tokens using Fireblocks’ existing security and policy controls.
Fireblocks has supported ADA since 2021. The expansion will add standard support for CNTs, with Cardano Token Registry and onchain metadata used to help identify supported assets. Stephen Richardson, chief strategy officer and head of banking at Fireblocks, said institutional adoption depends on both blockchain infrastructure and systems used to manage assets.
“Fireblocks gives them the second, with the security and policy controls that more than 100 banks rely on.”
Mastercard Program Focuses on Payments Discussions
The Cardano Foundation also joined Mastercard’s Crypto Partner Program this month under its Blockchains track. The Foundation said it will engage with Mastercard and other program participants on cross-border transfers, business-to-business transactions and settlement.
The announcement does not say Mastercard will process ADA payments or integrate Cardano directly into its card network. The program provides a framework for collaboration around blockchain and financial-services infrastructure.
Cardano Adds Developer Infrastructure
Cardano also released Mesmo on Sept. 24, a compiled native library designed to fill functionality gaps across existing Cardano software development kits. Mesmo provides wrappers for Python, Go, Rust and JavaScript, allowing developers to access functions not yet supported by their primary Cardano libraries without switching development stacks.
Accelerator Adds Eight Projects
The Cardano Foundation separately selected eight projects for its Fall 2026 Accelerator Program. The cohort focuses on areas including digital product passports, identity verification, supply-chain traceability and responsible artificial intelligence. The Mastercard program remains exploratory, while Fireblocks’ expanded CNT support is expected to become available by March 2027.
