Press Office

Auckland, 30 September 2010 - MasterCard Worldwide today announced that the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) region has seen a 38% year-on-year increase in the number of transactions processed through its e-commerce platform – the MasterCard Gateway Service (MiGS). In terms of gross dollar volume (in USD), these transactions represented a corresponding 66% increase for the first half of the year.

With 764 million Internet users in the Asia/Pacific region and 1.8 billion Internet users worldwide¹ , e-commerce has become one of the world’s most significant trading channels. MasterCard has tapped into the e-commerce opportunity by providing the MiGS, a secure, robust Internet payment solution.

The APMEA region is the most vibrant for MasterCard in terms of the usage of MiGS, which processes what are commonly referred to as Card-Not-Present (CNP) transactions, including e-commerce, m-commerce, telephone and mail order transactions as well as electronic bill payments.

“The Internet has reshaped the way businesses are run and changed how consumers like to pay for their purchases. MasterCard’s latest survey on online shopping demonstrates that secure payment facilities and convenient payment methods are the top most important factors influencing respondents’ online shopping experience. Besides fulfilling the needs of consumers, MiGS also provides merchants with valuable tools for day-to-day management of their e-commerce transactions and reduces operating costs. The growth is a testimony that the innovative solution resonated with the demands of the market in the region,” said Tim Fletcher, vice president, Hosted Services, Product Management, APMEA, MasterCard Worldwide.

As part of its broader processing strategy, MasterCard remains committed to raising the bar on innovation and providing solutions for the deployment of turn-key payment platforms. The company’s fully-integrated global payment platform enables its customer financial institutions to offer new, differentiated products to their cardholders; build new relationships; enhance customer loyalty; reach new segments; secure first-mover advantage and drive greater efficiencies.

MasterCard has recently entered into an agreement to purchase DataCash, a European payment service provider, with the intention to expand and enhance its successful MiGS gateway business, enabling merchants to gain new market reach and access to value-added services. DataCash offers a single interface that provides European e-commerce merchants with the ability to process secure payments across the world.

MasterCard Worldwide advances global commerce by providing a critical economic link among financial institutions, businesses, cardholders and merchants worldwide. As a franchisor, processor and advisor, MasterCard develops and markets payment solutions, processes over 22 billion transactions each year, and provides industry-leading analysis and consulting services to financial-institution customers and merchants. Powered by the MasterCard Worldwide Network and through its family of brands, including MasterCard^®, Maestro^® and Cirrus^®, MasterCard serves consumers and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. For more information go to www.mastercard.com. Follow us on Twitter:@mastercardnews.