In 2015, MasterCard set its Universal Financial Access 2020 goal to connect 40 million micro and small merchants to its electronic payments network in the upcoming 5 years.
MasterCard’s Universal Financial Access 2020 Commitment
Since 2013, over 200 million people, who were previously excluded from MasterCard’s financial mainstream, have gotten access to programs and services provided by the company. The number is going to reach at least 500 million by 2020.
MasterCard has formed a broad-based collaboration with entities in the public and private sectors. This enables the company to bring the advantages and security of electronic payments to those who are unbanked around the world.
Merchants interested in payment processing should turn to a reputable processor like eMerchantBroker to open a low-cost and reliable merchant account for their companies. EMB is the top rated high risk payment processor in the US and has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB).
MasterCard Across the Globe
The Direct Express® program, which is a partnership between the US Department of Treasury, Comerica Bank, and MasterCard, aims to help people in the US access account information without difficulty. The program provides federal benefit payments electronically and has also launched a mobile app. Given MasterCard’s worldwide collaboration:
- In partnership with Rwanda’s government, MasterCard aims to fast-track the country’s move to bring 90% of its citizens in the financial mainstream.
- MasterCard is helping Egypt’s government roll out a digital ID program that links citizens’ national ID to the currently used national mobile money platform. This will enable 54 million Egyptians to become involved in the formal electronic economy thanks to a single, user-friendly cashless program.
- In Bangladesh, MasterCard, Western Union, BRAC Bank, and bKash, the fastest growing provider of mobile financial services in Bangladesh, have launched an international remittance service. The latter allows 22 million customers registered in bKash’s to receive international remittances directly into their bKash mobile wallet.
- In Albania, Ghana, Mozambique, Lesotho, and Democratic Republic of Congo, MasterCard, Vodaphone, and HomeSend have enabled the real-time, mobile receipt of remittances by M-Pesa users.
Helping Micro and Small Merchants
Some large-scale programs have had limited success in the initial stage. This is because most micro and small merchants do not accept electronic payments. According to Ajay Banga, president and CEO of MasterCard, enabling micro and small merchants to connect to electronic payments will result in faster adoption and usage of modern financial tools for those who are unbanked. Additionally, it will truly affect people’s everyday life.
MasterCard has recently announced its efforts to expand the use of electronic payments by micro, small and medium enterprises through the partnership with the IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. Thanks to the “Financing Facility for Acceptance Development”, specific challenges faced by banks and the mentioned businesses will be addressed with an emphasis on Latin America, parts of Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.