Visa, Mastercard stocks slide after stablecoin report

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) stock dropped 4.9% and Visa (NYSE:V) sank 5.3% in Friday late morning trading after a report said massive retailers Amazon.com (AMZN) and Walmart (WMT) are considering stablecoin payment systems that would bypass traditional payment rails.

Some fintechs also weakened, with PayPal Holdings (PYPL) wilting 4.4%, Paysafe (PSFE) dropping 3.8%, Shift4 Payments (FOUR) declining 3.7%, and Block (XYZ) dipping 2.1%.

The Israeli attack on Iran is likely contributing to investors’ concerns about the economy, in general, and financial stocks, in particular. The S&P 500 Financials Sector Index was the largest decliner in Friday trading, down 1.5%. The Nasdaq Bank Index (BKX) fell 1.2%.

“A stagflationary growth lower/inflation higher shock from higher oil on top of Trump tariffs would further deteriorate the outlook and complicate the task of central bankers,” Evercore ISI’s Krishna Guha wrote in a note to clients.

Credit card names American Express (AXP) lost 2.1%, Bread Financial (BFH) -2.8%, and Synchrony Financial (SYF) -1.3%.