Mastercard has announced that South Africa will be the first market to benefit from real-time card payments. The company is working on enabling acquiring banks to process these payments through product innovations, enhancements to its network, and strategic partnerships. In the future, issuing banks will also be able to process real-time card payments.
This move by Mastercard is part of its global priority to make real-time card payments more accessible. The company is looking into expanding this offering to other regions as well. Gabriel Swanepoel, the Southern Africa country manager at Mastercard, highlighted the importance of adapting payments to meet the changing needs and expectations of consumers and businesses. By improving processing standards, delivering faster clearing and settlement, Mastercard aims to support small businesses with better cash flow and help acquirers manage liquidity more effectively.
To achieve these goals, Mastercard will introduce new standards and solutions to speed up the processing of card transactions. This includes real-time clearing and more frequent settlement cycles, which will enable same-day payouts for South African merchants. The groundwork for these changes was laid last year when Mastercard enhanced its network and enabled local transaction processing in South Africa.
In collaboration with global payments technology provider ACI Worldwide, Mastercard is helping acquirers in the country adopt real-time transaction processing standards. Bill Farris, head of issuing and acquiring at ACI Worldwide, believes that this initiative will improve liquidity, provide faster access to funds, and create more seamless payment experiences for local customers and businesses.
Mastercard’s focus on Africa is part of its broader strategy to drive digital transformation in regions with high cash transaction rates. This effort includes partnerships with large telcos and mobile network operators, as well as expanding acceptance locations in Africa over the past five years.
Recently, Mastercard partnered with Amazon to digitize payment acceptance in Africa and the Middle East. This collaboration, which covers South Africa and several other countries, will see Amazon Payment Services adopting Mastercard Gateway as a payment solution in 40 markets in the region.
Overall, Mastercard’s initiative to introduce real-time card payments in South Africa demonstrates its commitment to enhancing payment systems, supporting small businesses, and improving the overall payment experience for customers and businesses in the region.