Deel dit artikel
Mastercard Launches Prepaid Card for World's First CBDC in Bahamas
The Bahamian Sand Dollar can now be used for payments anywhere Mastercard is accepted.
Door Jamie Crawley
Make us preferred on Google
People in the Bahamas now have the option of loading the country's central bank digital currency (CBDC) onto a prepaid Mastercard to enable use anywhere in the world, the payments giant has announced.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Mis geen enkel verhaal.Abonneer je vandaag nog op de State of Crypto Nieuwsbrief. Bekijk Alle Nieuwsbrieven
- The Bahamas Sand Dollar, the world's first CBDC, can now be converted into traditional Bahamian dollars using a prepaid Mastercard, enabling users to pay for goods and services wherever Mastercard is accepted worldwide.
- Since deployment in October 2020, the Sand Dollar has been accessed exclusively through a digital app at select merchants.
- The CBDC aims to spur financial inclusion by addressing the expense and difficulty of moving cash between the Bahamas' 700 small islands.
- The Mastercard development will also open the Sand Dollar to more users, as it has previously only been available to individuals and businesses domiciled in the Bahamas.
- The Sand Dollar carries the same value as the Bahamian dollar, itself pegged to the U.S. dollar.
See also: Mastercard Will Let Merchants Accept Payments in Crypto This Year
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Days of our market structure bills: State of Crypto
We have a new draft and fresh questions.
Top Stories
