Mastercard’s Digital First programme gives consumers the choice of making payments with digital cards or directly from bank accounts by using smartphones, smart watches or any other digital device. — Photo Mastercard
Mastercard is strengthening its global Digital First programme across Asia Pacific with a range of innovative partners to meet customer's rising demand for convenient and secure transactions.
Mastercard’s Digital First programme maximises the safety, security and convenience of e-commerce, online banking and contactless transactions by providing the guidelines for payment processors, fintechs, issuing banks and other partners to create end-to-end digital payment options at scale.
Backed by the speed and security of Mastercard’s global network, the Digital First programme offers consumers the ease of applying online, rapid access to begin making purchases, flexibility and peace-of-mind while shopping. It gives consumers the choice of making payments with digital cards or directly from bank accounts by using smartphones, smart watches or any other digital device.
It also provides innovative new ways to receive payments including Mastercard’s QR on Card, which places a QR code on a consumer’s payment card to allow senders to scan and transfer funds securely and easily to their account of choice.
“Combined with the strengths of Mastercard’s partners, the Digital First programme offers the convenience of fast, transparent payments and maximises consumer choice with everything from digital cards in e-wallets, to QR on Card, to the Pay by Account solution that lets people make payments from a bank account using their financial service provider’s app. For merchants, the benefits include access to a wider consumer base and faster availability of funds,” said Sandeep Malhotra, Executive Vice President, Products & Innovation, Asia Pacific, Mastercard.
With consumers making a rapid and lasting shift to a “digital by default” mindset, Mastercard research shows that 30 per cent of people in Australia, 49 per cent in India, 55 per cent in China and 34 per cent in Japan plan to make more purchases online. A large majority – 71 per cent in Australia, 77 per cent in India, 73 per cent in China and 62 per cent in Japan – believe the shift to contactless payments is here to stay.
In Asia Pacific, Mastercard’s Digital First products are becoming the standard in many markets with customers including HSBC, Mox by Standard Chartered and WeLab Bank in Hong Kong SAR, Singapore’s GrabPay, Atlantis in Singapore and India, RBL Bank, Yes Bank and BOB Financial Solutions Limited, also in India, VIB in Viet Nam, Sumitomo Mitsui Card Co. Ltd and Credit Saison in Japan. — VNS