Mastercard has partnered with Scale, an issuer orchestration partner, to accelerate market deployment for fintech companies across the Middle East and Africa.
In a statement, Mastercard said the partnership will alleviate key technical and commercial barriers to entry that fintech companies, aggregators, enablers, payment service providers (PSPs) and telcos face when launching payment programs — enabling them to focus on their core business and launch new products and services efficiently.
Amnah Ajmal, executive vice president of Market Development, EEMEA, Mastercard, stated, “At Mastercard, we are committed to working with local ecosystem players to drive the growth of innovative payment solutions across the region to bridge the digital gap, enhance financial inclusion, and improve access to financial services.”
He added, “With its in-depth knowledge of the fintech landscape, Scale is our ideal partner in achieving these goals.”
Mastercard and Scale said the new partnership will help them support fintech companies and other ecosystem players to secure BIN sponsorships, build sustainable unit economics, and design and commercialise their card and other payment programs.
The collaboration will evolve into a technology proposition, enabling any tech company to acquire the Mastercard issuing capability through Scale.
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Miranda Perumal, Co-Founder and chief executive officer of Scale, said, “Through our exciting partnership with Mastercard, we are solving a major pain point… This combined ecosystem service allows fintech players to focus on their core business and us to focus on ours – streamlining processes, enabling payments and supporting the program’s growth to earn revenues faster.”
The partnering companies noted that the partnership will also bring various advantages to a wide range of other players across the ecosystem. They highlighted that it would facilitate collaborations with stakeholders in the financial industry in the card value chain.
“For governments, the new financial offerings available in the market will contribute to reducing cash-based transactions, enabling more people and businesses to participate in economic development and boosting GDP growth. Finally, consumers will have more choice of financial products and services that meet their needs,” they added.
