MasterCard claims to have issued 2.2 million branded smart cards in Asia Pacific in the first half of this year, a 65 per cent increase within six months.
To date, Mastercard has issued 6 million smart cards in the region, 4 million of which are EMV (Europay-MasterCard-Visa) compliant, the global standard covering smart credit and debit cards.
Jeff Portelli, senior vice president, product delivery group in Asia Pacific MasterCard says: "We see solid prospects for this year where many of our member financial institutions in the region will begin to reap the benefits of moving to chip."
MasterCard is also taking steps to ensure that banks are up to speed with the latest standards and has conducted its first EMV training session in Malaysia.
Shuan Ghaidan, vice president of advanced payment systems, Asia Pacific MasterCard comments: "Through the training sessions, we will advise members on how to plan their migration, create a consumer proposition for moving to chip, choose the right applications and partner with the right people."
The workshop detailed MasterCard's OneSmart solution which provides member financial institutions with technology choices and marketing support.
Ninety members from the region including Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia participated in the training.