Mastercard aims to extend Indian network with Rs 16.25 bn investment

Global payments network Mastercard plans to invest around Rs 16.25 billion in India by 2019 to boost digital payments in the country.

The company said it was on track to invest Rs 65 billion between 2014 and 2019, and had already invested 75 per cent of the amount. Mastercard recently opened a technology centre in Vadodara, in addition to new offices in Bengaluru, Gurugram, and a Mastercard innovation lab and operations hub in Pune. The company’s India workforce comprises 14 per cent of its global staff strength, and is the largest outside the US. “We strongly support the government’s push towards establishing India as a less-cash society and have continuously invested in this vision,” said Porush Singh, corporate officer, India, and division president, South Asia, Mastercard.

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“Around 80-85 per cent of the fees in debit card transactions go to financial institutions and other processors located in India for their services and will stay entirely within the country. Only 15-20 per cent will come to Mastercard as compensation for our network services. It’s between 12 and 15 paise in a Rs 100 transaction. We stand committed to India’s future. We believe the success of the Indian economy is the success of Mastercard,” Singh added.