The MasterCard Labs in Dublin will be the first such office in Europe and joins Purchase, New York, Singapore and St Louis, Missouri, as part of an ever growing global network of innovation excellence.

As the first event hosted at MasterCard Labs Dublin, MasterCard's innovation showcase featured an array of products and services, which demonstrated ways the company uses technology and innovation to grow its business, diversify across geographies and customers, and build new business.

Garry Lyons, Chief Innovation Officer, MasterCard Worldwide said: "MasterCard has a strong history of delivering leading innovations around the world. The MasterCard Labs team is going to expand on that heritage by pushing the boundaries of innovation and technology to create an environment focused on delivering products and solutions that make people's lives easier, wherever they are in the world."

MasterCard highlighted an array of new and existing innovations, which focused on the following global trends:

- Personalization and a deep understanding of audiences around the world:
- South Africa using electronic payments to distribute Social Security benefits;
- The Wanda Joint Venture in Latin America, allowing consumers to use mobile money solutions through a basic flip phone to pay merchants at the point-of-sale;
- Accepting payments through mobile point-of-sale (MPOS) devices such as iZettle
- Transforming the Shopping Experience:Evolving the shopping experience by creating experiences that exceed expectations. Some examples include:

• Highlighting PayPass Wallet Services across an array of devices - from laptops to smartphones to TVs;
• How merchants will be able to accept PayPass Wallet Services payments at a brick and mortar location;
• A new solution called Shoppable enabling simple and secure checkout directly from all forms of digital content;

- Experiences Beyond Paymentsts:Developing new ways to enhance the consumer experience beyond payments. Some new ways MasterCard is doing this include:

• Showing how KOY, a social media coupon application, provides value to both the consumer and merchant;
• Demonstrating how EVNTS, a social media advertising platform, delivers payments and next generation loyalty capability to merchants, large and small;

- Leveraging the Power of Technology: At the heart of all this innovation are the MasterCard Network and Advisors services - delivering safe, simple and smart payment solutions.

These new and innovative products and solutions continue the ideal that paying is no longer a one-way transaction. MasterCard is enabling consumers and merchants to engage in a dialogue that allows both parties to share information and help provide new value.