In a recent interview with CNBC-TV18, Mastercard's Global CEO, Michael Miebach, shared his optimistic outlook on India's opportunities, particularly in the fintech space. With a focus on expanding access to credit, and commercial payments, and boosting cybersecurity, Mastercard is doubling down on its commitment to India's tech ecosystem.
Mastercard’s recent expansion plans in India
Mastercard has recently established its largest global facility in Pune, indicating a strategic move to increase its presence in the country.
Miebach stressed the importance of India's talent pool, the scale of its economy, and the innovative spirit that sets it apart from the rest of the world.
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Investments in India
Over the last five years, Mastercard has invested $1 billion in India, with its latest tech hub pointing up to the company's commitment to the country. The state-of-the-art tech hub, spread over half a million square meters, reflects the company’s long-term vision for growth and innovation in India.
Mastercard is at the forefront of revolutionizing payment solutions in India by introducing passkeys, biometric authentication, and tokenization for e-commerce transactions. The global CEO discussed the company's efforts to replace traditional security measures like passwords with biometric data such as fingerprints or face scans, ensuring a more secure and seamless payment experience for users.
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Mastercard is actively partnering with banks and payment providers worldwide to integrate tokens based on user's biometric details, replacing passwords with more secure authentication methods.
Indian collaboration
In India, Mastercard has already introduced this feature in collaboration with PayU and Axis Bank for a more secure and convenient payment ecosystem. Miebach lauded India's strong fintech ecosystem, also accentuating his company's role as a fintech giant in driving innovation and digital transformation.
Incidentally, Mastercard is focussing on tokenizing all e-commerce transactions in Europe by the end of the decade.
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