Mastercard Send™ has enabled a successful festive season for online businesses and consumers

The ongoing pandemic has accelerated real-time payments as consumers increasingly seek alternatives to cash. This has led to a notable shift towards digital payment solutions.  With the festive season at its peak, Mastercard Send™—which launched in India (via Mastercard customers’) in July 2019 and can enable near real-time* Business-to-Consumer (B2C) disbursements and Person-to-Person (P2P) transfers—is enabling online businesses to manage high volume transactions, refunds, cash on delivery returns and disbursements.

Diwali is one of the most auspicious festivals in India, and for consumers, it is considered the best time to make purchases. Consequently, merchants roll out discounts and offers to increase sales. These discounts and offers increase the purchasing power of the consumer. Though, with traditional payment methods, consumers had to wait five to seven days to receive their discounts. But with Mastercard Send™, these transactions are processed in near real-time, providing a better overall consumer experience and making it easier for merchants to manage their payout programs. Its standout features are its ease of integration, simplified customer onboarding, enhanced operational experience with seamless backend framework.

Mastercard Send™ allows people and organizations to send and receive money how, where and when they choose, and plays a key role in enhancing payment experiences for customers. Companies like Razorpay and Paytm utilize the solution for instant refunds while acquirers such as RBL Bank, Yes Bank, PayTM Payments Bank and SBM Bank are using this solution to empower merchants and financial technology firms with instant payment solution on credit card bill payments.

Commenting on the success, Amitabh Tewary, Chief Innovation Officer, Razorpay Pvt. Ltd. said, “Instant refunds is a strong benefit that helps in building customer confidence in digital payments. With Mastercard Send™, real-time refunds can be passed to customers while restoring fair economics for merchants. Moreover, a single integration makes Mastercard Send work seamlessly across acquirers, making it easier for payment aggregators and merchants to adopt this powerful solution. At Razorpay, the customer is at the heart of all our innovations while our solutions are built to provide simplicity and ease for merchants. Mastercard Send™ checks all these considerations. We are confident that our partnership with Mastercard for this service will lead to a superior experience for customers and merchants alike, creating value for all stakeholders.”

Pushpendra Sharma, Head Digital Payments & Acquiring, RBL Bank said, “At RBL Bank, we are constantly working towards enhancing our customer experience. We launched Mastercard Send™, an instant payment solution for credit card bill payments, empowering merchants, and financial technology firms to offer a seamless experience to their users. Fintechs are using this solution for​ providing instant credit to the cardholders, thereby enhancing loyalty and spends among customers. Being ranked amongst the top Banks in digital payments, we are focused towards launching newer solutions to drive digital payments.”

Neeraj Sinha, Head- Retail & Consumer Banking, SBM Bank India said, “Some solutions truly represent the festive season – bringing people together, enriching their lives and facilitating a memorable experience. Mastercard Send™ is one such product that has given our customers invaluable reasons to cheer and celebrate – with ease of access, safety and reliability. At SBM Bank India, we have always valued our partnership with Mastercard, and Mastercard Send™ has further cemented this partnership with its value proposition for our customers.”

Praveen Sharma, Senior Vice President, Paytm said, “We are committed to providing seamless & safe digital payments experience to our users and driving financial inclusion across the country. Our partnership with Mastercard and the launch of the product Mastercard Send is a step in this direction. With instant refunds, reward points redemption, seamless credit card payments & disbursements, we aim to instill confidence among new users and further propel our mission of bringing half a billion Indians to the mainstream economy.”

Commenting on the success, Vikas Varma, Chief Operating Officer, South Asia, Mastercard said, “Mastercard Send™, has helped the Indian Fintech ecosystem and large merchants to offer credit card bill payments, cashback, reward point redemptions and refunds instantly. With the festive season, Mastercard Send provides various merchants, issuers and acquirers with enhanced reach, scalability, stability and support to further fuel multiple instant payment needs. Mastercard looks forward to continued adoption of its platform and is working with its partners/ customers such as Yes Bank, Razorpay, RBL Bank, SBM Bank India, Paytm, MakeMyTrip and many more to provide the right solutions for consumers and merchants.”

Mastercard has been actively working towards driving acceptance for digital payments in India. The company is enabling ease of payments for merchants and payment aggregators to help them grow their businesses efficiently. With new products like Mastercard Send™, the country can expect an increased inclination among online merchants and banks to curate new payments and price propositions for consumers, which will further drive digital adoption in the country.

*Actual posting times for approved transactions will depend on the receiving financial institution