MasterCard today announced it will provide integrated processing services to customers across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) through an end-to-end, multi-brand cards and payments processing center located in the UAE.
The center will help customers respond rapidly to changing consumer needs, drive adoption of innovative technology and increase efficiency. Its opening highlights MasterCard's commitment to bring global expertise closer to customers in local markets.
"The MasterCard Processing Center is a continuation of our global strategy to expand the company's processing presence in high growth markets, bringing solutions closer to customers," explains Cathy McCaul, President of MasterCard Global Processing. By harnessing our global expertise, and using that to address specific market needs, we will have the ability to provide customers with integrated issuer and acquirer processing services using a state-of-the-art platform. There is a particular need for this in emerging markets where the rapid change in products and the growth in electronic payments challenge the capacity, security and capability of existing systems."
The MasterCard Processing Center is designed to be a one-stop-shop for financial institutions, governments and telecommunication companies, for all their payment processing requirements. The service will combine best-in-class processing platforms for credit, debit and prepaid processing along with advanced value-added-services around fraud, analytics and loyalty brought by operations owned and operated by MasterCard.
Currently, MasterCard provides issuer and/or acquirer processing services in more than 24 countries globally. The company's focus on customer service and operational excellence has allowed MasterCard to partner with leading issuers to bring new, safer, and simpler payments products to consumers and to make it easier for issuers to focus on their core business by outsourcing their technology and operations.
"As consumers continue to embrace electronic payments, MasterCard Processing will ensure partners are well positioned to respond to evolving demands and allow them to offer the most advanced products and services," says Raghu Malhotra, division president, Middle East and North Africa, MasterCard. "MasterCard Processing will be built as an integrated solution with the most advanced software so it will not have constraints sometimes found in legacy systems. This will ensure a seamless transition to next generation payment solutions like 'MasterPass'. Eventually, it will also help integrate additional value-added services around multi-channel platforms including e-commerce and m-commerce."
Besides allowing its customers to swiftly develop innovative payment solutions, the Center will also deliver richer behavioral insights through comprehensive cardholder intelligence, allowing banks to develop offers based on consumer spending patterns. Furthermore, by linking an easy-to-use single connection to a comprehensive, globally connected infrastructure, MasterCard Processing will eliminate inefficiencies that result from using disparate processing platforms.
"Financial institutions in emerging markets usually face constraints that hinder the investment in and adoption of technologically-advanced solutions. With the launch of MasterCard Processing, we have created a unique platform that will now allow our customers to swiftly bring cost-effective innovative solutions to market. We are excited to bring this global capability to the region and we are confident that it will help drive the adoption of next-generation payment solutions," concluded Malhotra.