New York, Feb 26, 2026, 15:02 EST — Regular session
Shares of Mastercard Inc stumbled $30.01, or 5.6%, landing at $509.39 during Thursday’s afternoon session. The selloff also pulled Visa lower by 4.5%, while American Express dropped 7.2%.
Investors are once again wrestling with a familiar worry: just how quickly “agent” software and crypto rails might upend the payments landscape, and if market jitters are justified. Citadel Securities macro strategist Frank Flight pushed back on the rout sparked by the viral scenario, calling the move “way overdone.” He pointed to data showing scant signs of any “imminent displacement risk.” 1
Consensys, the firm behind MetaMask, announced that the MetaMask Card has rolled out nationwide in the U.S., and for the first time, New York residents can get it too. The card works wherever Mastercard is accepted, tying users’ self-custodied crypto—kept in their own wallet, not on an exchange—directly to regulated payments rails. MetaMask said Cross River Bank is the issuer, with Mastercard’s network powering transactions. “Building stronger bridges” between decentralized finance and everyday spending is the goal, according to Mastercard’s Sherri Haymond. 2
Mastercard executive Hai Ling exercised employee stock options and sold 8,971 shares of Class A common stock on Feb. 23 and 24, according to a filing. The transactions were made under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan Ling adopted back on Nov. 29, 2024. These plans pre-arrange trades, so insiders like Ling don’t pick the exact dates for sales. 3
Mastercard’s annual report highlights the rollout of Mastercard Agent Pay, a tool designed for payments in so-called “agentic commerce,” where AI software agents handle transactions. A worldwide launch is on deck for early 2026. On the security front, Mastercard said roughly 40% of its transactions are now tokenized, swapping out card numbers for digital tokens. 4
Stocks slipped Thursday, as Nvidia’s earnings couldn’t spark another leg up for AI names—the Nasdaq dropped 1.5%, while the S&P 500 shed 0.73%, according to Reuters. 5
Even so, crypto-linked cards and on-chain rewards remain tangled in regulatory and compliance hurdles for banks, making it tough to gauge exactly how they affect Mastercard’s main network fee revenue. Should risk appetite hold up through month-end, the sector’s sharp swings could just as easily snap back.
Management’s take on digital assets and agent-led payments is in focus with two Mastercard execs set to speak: Raj Seshadri hits the stage at Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media & Telecom event, March 4 at 10:45 a.m. ET. Linda Kirkpatrick follows with her scheduled slot at Wolfe’s FinTech Forum, March 10 at 2:35 p.m. ET, according to the company. 6
