Mastercard Grows Network Of Tech Partners To Provide Digital Solutions

Mastercard said Monday (March 8) said it is expanding its Engage platform to give “customers easy access to a growing network of qualified technology and FinTech partners that can quickly deploy Mastercard Digital First solutions.” The company said its business customers will be able “to provide entirely digital payment experiences for consumers, from acquisition and card usage to management and engagement, with a physical card option.”

Andrea Scerch, Mastercard’s president of consumer products for issuers, said the company is “powering consumer choice by building a robust network of qualified” tech providers for businesses and organizations. Partners include i2c, Marqeta, Galileo, Signzy, Provenir, Thales and Verestro.

He added that “the expansion of Mastercard Engage is happening at a critical time when financial institutions and digital players are seeking to fulfill consumer demand for digital experiences, but may not have all of the in-house capabilities to do so.”

“Enabling seamless digital experiences is central to modern financial life,” said Jim McCarthy, President at i2c. “We’re thrilled to help Mastercard customers in their pursuit of Digital First programs.”

“As a partner on the Mastercard Engage platform, we’re providing businesses with digital payment capabilities they can build on to heighten their customers’ payments convenience, access and security,” said Clay Wilkes, CEO at Galileo. “Today’s consumers expect frictionless digital payments experiences, and Galileo is meeting this demand.”

Mastercard has been saying for some time that it’s time for card issuers to up their digital game.

“Consumers … want to be able to manage all parts of their financial life through digital channels,” added Salman Syed, general manager, North America, at Marqeta.

Sherri Haymond, Mastercard’s executive vice president of digital partnerships, said the pandemic has pushed consumers — including herself — into modifying, or even ditching, their old habits.

“Before [COVID-19] I was not an avid Instacart user, because I actually like going to the grocery store. I think it’s fun. There’s an element of discovery,” Haymond told PYMNTS. “But to have the convenience and the safety of delivery through something like Instacart — for me, it was a major game changer. There were many months that I didn’t go to a grocery store because Instacart made it that I didn’t have to. And I was really grateful for that.”