Mastercard’s Middle-Market Play Uses Digital Innovation to Bridge Finance Gaps

The middle market continues to draw the attention of payments and banking companies, with Mastercard announcing a package of digital and financial management tools aimed at that segment on Tuesday (Feb. 18).

Called the Mastercard Mid-Market Accelerator, the suite of solutions is aimed at companies with annual revenues between $10 million and $100 million or about 50-250 employees. It will assist banks and FinTechs in catering to their lower middle-market clients. The offering, which will initially be available in the U.S. before scaling globally, combines Mastercard’s digital payment technology and value-added services with features from partners that offer transparency, automation and security.

According to Mastercard’s Jane Prokop, EVP and global head of small and medium-sized enterprises, the Accelerator will provide a flexible mix of solutions that financial providers can customize to meet the needs of middle-market customers.

Mastercard is collaborating with issuers such as Citizens and FinTech providers such as Navan (expense management) and Trovata (cash flow management). The new Mastercard business card is part of the middle-market package and offers a selection of Mastercard card benefits from existing small business and commercial card programs, as well as new rewards. The card is available in physical and virtual formats and will include security enhancements such as ID Theft Protection, HealthLock, and Zero Liability Protection.

Middle-Market Challenges

In an interview with PYMNTS, Prokop said that middle-market companies face unique challenges that neither small businesses nor large corporations encounter to the same degree. While small businesses benefit from simplified financial products and large corporations have access to highly customized solutions, middle-market firms frequently struggle with access to capital, fragmented banking relationships, and outdated underwriting practices that do not reflect their rapid growth.

“The lack of access to the right kind of capital to grow the business is a huge pain point in the middle market,” Prokop said. “They need more complex underwriting because they often work with multiple bank accounts, creating a fragmented view of their financial activity.”

Mastercard research puts the average middle-market company growth rate in its network at 12% in 2024. That clip means that middle-market businesses often find that traditional underwriting approaches fail to capture their current trajectory, leading to a lag in access to necessary funding. Additionally, many still rely on manual processes, such as invoicing and reconciliations, which limit their operational efficiency.

According to Prokop, and featured in the Accelerator, a key component of Mastercard’s strategy to better serve this market is the adoption of virtual cards. Despite their advantages in security and expense control, virtual card usage has not yet reached the levels that major financial institutions would like to see. Prokop highlighted two primary benefits: secure supplier payments and delegated spending control.

“With a virtual card, you’re providing a one-time number that cannot be reused. That’s a game-changer in terms of security,” she said. Additionally, for companies where business owners may still carry personal liability on a corporate credit card, virtual cards offer a secure way to delegate spending to employees and contractors without exposure to fraud or mismanagement.

PYMNTS Intelligence data shows virtual cards offer a versatile and flexible cash flow option that company finance departments can easily track. However, the data shows just 3.3% of growth corporates in North America use virtual cards.

Designed for Pain Points

Prokop stressed that Mastercard’s middle-market initiative places issuers at the center of the experience. By integrating FinTech partners with financial institutions, Mastercard aims to create a more robust suite of offerings that address mid-market needs like cash flow management and expense tracking.

“This isn’t just about theoretical improvements,” Prokop said. “We’ve been working closely with issuers and middle-market companies for over 18 months to design solutions based on their pain points.”

The accelerator ensures that companies can access these services directly through their existing banking relationships, streamlining adoption and making it easier for issuers to provide tailored solutions. This announcement also aligns with Mastercard’s broader partnership strategy, which is rooted in collaboration between traditional financial institutions and FinTechs to create more effective financial ecosystems.

“We look to pair up parties in ways that allow them to serve the middle market more holistically,” Prokop said. This approach helps banks graduate businesses seamlessly from small business solutions into middle-market services without losing customer relationships, she said, adding that scalability and personalization remain at the core of Mastercard’s vision for this segment. By leveraging richer data insights, issuers can better understand customer needs and deliver more tailored financial products.

“Personalization starts with data,” Prokop said. “Many middle-market companies struggle to get a holistic view of their own financial standing. By making this information more accessible, we empower both companies and their financial providers to make more informed decisions.”

Ultimately, Mastercard’s expansion in this space is not just about refining its card offerings but about evolving beyond cards altogether.

“Providing solutions that go beyond the card is really core to our vision,” Prokop said. “We’re focused on delivering a full range of financial and payment solutions that help our partners and their customers succeed in an increasingly digital world.”