Stablecoins grew up this week: the big card networks and Stripe all shipped products, and a gaming giant launched its own ad network.

1. Mastercard and BVNK launch Global Money Platform

Mastercard rolled out its first major product since buying BVNK in August. Through a single API, banks, fintechs and businesses can embed accounts that hold both fiat and stablecoins, convert between them in real time, issue stablecoin-linked cards and send payouts to local bank accounts 1666. Card issuing covers 130+ countries, and the payout network is expected to expand to 40+ currencies in 2027.

2. Visa moves stablecoin payouts from pilot to production

Visa Direct's stablecoin funding is now commercial, with payments provider Inyo Global as the first partner. Businesses can prefund cross-border payouts with USDC in near real time instead of waiting for traditional funding windows.

3. Stripe and Plasma build multi-currency stablecoin cards

The new cards will let people spend from the currencies they already hold, cutting unnecessary conversions and FX costs. They will support USD, EUR, BRL, MXN and COP plus eligible stablecoins, available in 30+ countries now and 100+ planned for 2027.

4. Stablecoin payments hit $482 billion

According to blockchain analytics firm Allium, stablecoin payment value rose 45% to $482 billion through September 30. The number of payments grew 71% to 1.04 billion, while total supply barely moved at $305 billion.

5. Miniclip launches AdSurge, a new mobile ad network

Tencent-owned Miniclip launched AdSurge, a mobile advertising platform that covers both user acquisition and ad monetisation. It will start with games that earn most of their money from in-app ads, and the next phase will extend it to games monetised through in-app purchases and hybrid models. Miniclip says work began three years ago and that acquisitions like Easybrain gave it the scale to launch. AdSurge runs as a standalone company, and partner data is kept in strict isolation.

#digest

Your media buyer is paying for your campaigns from their own pocket

11 p.m. A test needs a new tool, right away. Approval takes two days, but the campaign launch window is two hours.

So the buyer pays himself thinking "I'll expense it later."
→ receipt in a chat
→ a spreadsheet row with a missing column
→ "who approves this?"
→ three weeks of waiting

That's an unofficial loan from your team to your company, with no interest and no thank-you.

The cause isn't discipline. It's visibility. Finance can't see the spending, so every request starts from zero, and it takes time.

One card per person or campaign + one dashboard + clear limits = faster approvals and nobody paying out of pocket.

When did someone on your team last pay from their own card?

Capitalist