The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq rose on Thursday, just shy of record highs with investors betting on more fiscal stimulus to ride out a coronavirus-driven recession as data showed a stalling recovery in the labor market.
Mastercard Inc rose about 3% after the credit-card giant said it was planning to offer support for some cryptocurrencies on its network this year, joining a string of big-ticket firms that have pledged similar support.
Other payments companies PayPal Holdings Inc and Visa Inc gained 7% and 2%, respectively.
Bank of New York Mellon rose about 2% after saying it had formed a