Right, I view this announcement as a ploy by Mastercard to stay relevant and probably appease their investors.
One of the key selling points of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is removing the middleman from transactions. Arguably miners in the proof of work consensus are a middleman but not as much as the 2.5-3.5% charged by the likes of Visa and Mastercard.
The other one, as OP mentioned, is permissionless or decentralization - the freedom from the whims of governments and traditional banking systems. I don't see how Mastercard can straddle between the two without some deception.
One of the key selling points of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is removing the middleman from transactions. Arguably miners in the proof of work consensus are a middleman but not as much as the 2.5-3.5% charged by the likes of Visa and Mastercard.
The other one, as OP mentioned, is permissionless or decentralization - the freedom from the whims of governments and traditional banking systems. I don't see how Mastercard can straddle between the two without some deception.