The Reach Alliance, which studies sustainable innovation, outlines powerful strategies for tackling climate change in hard-to-reach communities, pointing to initiatives in Mongolia, Vanuatu, Philippines, India and Kenya.

Watching the UEFA Champions League Final live was just one of the many priceless experiences that five Citibank customers and their loved ones enjoyed on their paid trip to London, made possible by Citi’s partnership with Mastercard.

Matthew Driver explores how retailers can harness the power of AI to serve consumers better, while ensuring data responsibility and transparency in today's challenging economic climate.

Restoring 400,000 trees to a Philippine national park devastated by Typhoon Odette is replenishing nature and reestablishing livelihoods for the local community.

With half the world’s annual remittance flows - worth more than $700 billion – passing through Asia Pacific, Sandeep Malhotra explains why there is a pressing need for new technologies and modern payments to bear the load for the millions of people and businesses that depend on these payments.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific discusses the key takeaways from the Mastercard Economics Institute's "Travel Trends 2024" report on CNA Asia First, and shares why the global travel sector remains robust despite economic challenges.

APAC is widely accepted as the growth engine of the world, but that engine is not firing on all cylinders. AP President Ari Sarker says one key reason is that SMEs still lack access to credit. The upside? Governments’ increased investment in DPI and advancement of emerging technologies may help to turn the tide.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific speaks to Bloomberg about the key takeaways from the Mastercard Economics Institute's "Travel Trends 2024" report and the impact of the region's travel boom on major economies like Japan, China and India. 

A new pilot in Hong Kong with Standard Chartered Bank is the latest sign that momentum is building for tokenized bank deposits.

Matthew Driver discusses the crucial role of transparency and ethics in safeguarding consumer trust across industries in the age of AI.

APEMEA President Ling Hai on how Mastercard is supporting China's shift toward innovation-oriented growth and fostering a payment ecosystem that is friendly to international travelers.

As tourists flocked to Singapore for The Eras Tour, they boosted not only retail and dining spend but travel and accommodation too. David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific tells CNN how the Swift Lift seen in APAC could even outperform the uptick seen in the US.

From Pakistan to Peru and beyond, deploying gender-sensitive training and creating gender-specific financial tools is making a difference in women’s lives.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific speaks to CNA about Taylormania and how the feel good factor of the concerts, along with the spending sprees of the Swifties, can deliver the desired Swift Lift for Singapore.

Matthew Driver, executive vice president and head of Services, Asia Pacific, reflects on insights from the APAC report titled “Raising Trust and Innovation Together in the Asia-Pacific Region” launched by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services, in association with Mastercard.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific speaks to CNA Asia First about the ‘Swiftonomics’ effect and the impact that major events like concerts could have on the region's economies.

“Touch,” which debuted in Sydney Feb. 13, is making the moviegoing experience more accessible.

AP President Ari Sarker explains why it's time to recalibrate our collective fixation on paradigm-shifting technologies like gen AI so we can refocus our attention on iterative innovations that can positively impact people's lives.

Sandeep Malhotra speaks to Money FM about the trends transforming the payments landscape — from tokenization, AI and a growing preference for sustainable consumerism to intelligent experiences bridging virtual and physical worlds.

Sandeep Malhotra, executive vice president of products & innovation, Asia Pacific, highlights the benefits of a multilateral cross-border payment system for fulfilling users' needs.

Matthew Driver tells Money FM how Mastercard is utilizing emerging technology like AI and big data to transform the payments sector for businesses and consumers.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific, outlines the Mastercard Economics Institute's 2024 economic outlook on BBC's Asia Business Report, focusing on the rise in discretionary spending on travel and tourism in Asia Pacific and the continued recovery in China.

Matthew Driver, executive vice president, head of services, Asia Pacific, shares that hurdles of technology access must be overcome to leverage AI for financial inclusion and community empowerment.

Karthik Ramanathan highlights how Asian consumers are receptive to embrace new technologies, making the region an ideal ground for Mastercard to pioneer quick face scan payments for Asian shoppers, transforming checkout experiences.

Ari Sarker, president, Asia Pacific speaks with Bloomberg Markets Asia from the sidelines of the Singapore FinTech Festival 2023 about how AI will change the way we travel, shop and commute.

Mastercard’s executive vice-president for products and innovation (Asia Pacific), Sandeep Malhotra, shares his thoughts on how AI is utilized in reshaping the commerce landscape, personalising user journeys and bolstering online safety.

Jackson Henry is a young Australian cyberwhiz who is helping entrepreneurs shore up their defenses.

Gen AI is poised to revolutionize the way we live and work. From transforming travel planning to enhancing retail with personalized shopping assistants, explore how Gen AI can reshape conventional experiences.

Mastercard's Safdar Khan explores how the metaverse is augmenting traditional teaching methods by offering interactive and inclusive learning environments, breaking down barriers, and ensuring accessibility for every learner.

An inclusive growth forum hosted during the B20 in New Delhi offers insights into centering women in efforts to digitize, expand health care and combat climate change.

Lim Kok Kee, senior vice president, Government Engagement, Asia Pacific, writes in the Financial Times about our three-step approach to digitally transforming small and medium-sized businesses, and why this will have a community-wide impact.

We’re entering the data ownership era where consumers will retain control of their data — and stop giving it away for free. Sandeep Malhotra tells us why it’s more powerful in their hands.

Ari Sarker, president, Asia Pacific, shares with TIME about our continued focus on empowering our network of communities, and the increasing importance of collaboration in our sustainability strategy.

Mastercard’s Ben Gilbey debunks widespread myths about Buy Now Pay Later, and explains how trust in payments is hard to earn but easy to lose.

Ari Sarker, president, Asia Pacific, talks about the importance of creating time and space for yourself, advice for how to build your career, and why being clear on your purpose is critical for success in the workplace.

David Mann, chief economist, Asia Pacific, speaks with CNBC Squawk Box about Asia’s healthy travel recovery and the ongoing upside for China’s tourism spending that is expected to remain through 2024.

Hundreds of people are killed each year as elephants lose their natural migratory corridors and must roam farther afield for food.

Ling Hai, co-president, International Markets, speaks to “Bloomberg Markets Asia” about the highly anticipated reopening of borders across APAC, the resulting impact on travel recovery and consumer spend trends in China and around the region.

Four things Mastercard’s Safdar Khan has learned from playing chess.

Lyndal Cardy, chief technology officer (CTO) for Asia Pacific, discusses her love for technology and how women can succeed in the field.

With another year of economic uncertainty on the horizon, Asia Pacific President Ari Sarker urges us to remember the power we hold in our hands to change people's lives and livelihoods through digital payments.

Chennai-born Teja Venkatesa Perumal is part of the inaugural Quad Fellowship, which brings together young STEM leaders from India, Australia, Japan and the U.S. to spur innovation.

In the increasingly crowded Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) space, leveraging data-driven insights to drive differentiated strategies is more important than ever. Mastercard’s Aditi Sawhney and Adarsh Recriwal share how businesses can harness advanced analytics to make smarter decisions for better outcomes at the BNPL APAC Summit.

How has the installments landscape in Asia evolved, and what do the next 12 months look like? In this video replay, experts from Flipkart, Grab and Shopback joined Mastercard’s Ben Gilbey at the Buy Now Pay Later Summit APAC to discuss the shifts shaping the industry.

From digital wallet accounts to shares in project ownership, Mastercard’s Sandeep Malhotra explains how the metaverse will reimagine money as we know it.

How can businesses and the teams who run it best harness the power of artificial intelligence? Gautam Aggarwal explains the criticality – and limitations – of the technology in cybersecurity and customer experience.

Mastercard’s Safdar Khan discusses how reverse mentoring can unlock new perspectives for senior leaders and bridge generational gap at the workplace.

Sandeep Malhotra explains how public-private partnerships can help Asia's SMEs navigate the payments-related challenges they face on the journey to digitize and scale.

Ari Sarker discusses Asia’s economic recovery amidst rising global inflation, consumer spending trends, and accelerating inclusive growth.

It all started with a commercial about a baseball game, and the memorable moments it sparked. On its 25th anniversary, Priceless remains as resonant and relevant as ever.

India's Razorpay and Zeta are among the alumni of Mastercard Start Path that have achieved billion-dollar valuations.

Ari Sarker explains how the company is working with financial institutions to address the relatively untapped B2B payments space.

India stands out for having developed the account-based payments infrastructure to ensure easy access to instant, free payment transfers. For consumers, can it get any better than this? And what role can banks and fintechs play?

Mastercard’s Shafi Shaikh shares why the drive to understand people is the most important thing about leadership and the H.I.G.H principles that guide him.

Sandeep Malhotra discusses the latest research findings showing that digital payments uptake will only accelerate.

Mastercard CEO on the future of digital payments, the importance of India to Mastercard’s global strategy, his approach to leadership and more.

Sandeep Malhotra shares his thoughts on cryptos, NFTs, money tips for kids and where he thinks we'll be ordering coffee from next.

With border restrictions lifting and flights increasing, is travel going back to what it used to be? Lim Kok Kee argues that there is an opportunity to write a new future where tourism is more sustainable, inclusive, and beneficial to greater segments of the population.

Amanda Gervay, Mastercard's senior vice president for People & Capability, Asia Pacific, explains why organizations should foster a culture of corporate decency.

In the inaugural episode of India Financial Series, Ari Sarker shares his perspectives on inclusive growth, tokenization and cybersecurity, the needs of India's MSMEs and more.

Geeta Patel, the owner of a small neighborhood shop in Ahmedabad, India, has been able to grow her Ahmedabad shop through financial education and digital tools that help her better access credit.

Luu Thi Hoa’s agricultural cooperative, which sells produce and mint honey, a regional specialty, is helping bringing sustainable jobs to her remote community.

In India, Mastercard Farm Pass is helping farmers digitize their operations, access new buyers, and secure capital to grow.

Super apps are the modern-day equivalent of the ancient bazaar. With open banking and enabling technologies, they promise to deliver seamless consumer choice.

Gaming can no longer be viewed as just a trend. Instead, it has become a reality that sits inside the living rooms of billions of people. As consumer preferences and the dynamics of the rewards redemption industry have been irreversibly modified, there is no time like the present for consumers and brands alike to benefit from stepping into the gaming arena.

Mastercard's Rama Sridhar, who leads digital and emerging partnerships and new payment flows in Asia Pacific, shares three lessons from a 33-year career in tech.

The economic aftermath of COVID-19 continues to disproportionately affect the poor. Adopting two key priorities: leverage technology to test and learn in real time, and accept a different risk-reward ratio over an extended duration, can make a transformative difference that results in equitable opportunity and prosperous economies.

Mastercard's Matthew Driver, Head of Services in Asia Pacific, shares three ways to reevaluate our approach to diversity and inclusion.

As nations scrambled to fight the pandemic, we examine how administrations around the world faced a moment of reckoning. Those that supported the public and accelerated pandemic recovery through digitization have bounced back stronger.

As businesses emerge from a pandemic that drove many to adopt digital payments, they are now looking to leverage their investments for faster recoveries. The more digital payment options a merchant makes available, the more points of interaction (POI) it has with consumers.

As we move into 2022, the reinforced importance of digital resulting from the ongoing impact of Covid-19, and 'Web 3.0’, will continue to quicken the adoption of more innovative digital-based solutions in the consumer loyalty landscape, particularly in financial services.

In Asia Pacific, the migration toward a more digitized future has been even more pronounced in the wake of Covid-19, with a sharp rise in the adoption of emerging payment methods. This rapid transformation of the digital economy is, of course, to be welcomed. The challenge we face is to continue leveraging the clear benefits of the digital economy, while at the same time pursuing a common broader objective: inclusive growth.

An Australian teenage e-commerce entrepreneur is now tacking the billion-dollar problem of fraudulent refund claims through his startup Disputify, part of Mastercard's Start Path startup engagement program.

Singapore-based Rajat Maheshwari uses ‘Mission: Impossible’-style masks and fake body parts to stress-test biometric technology.

‘Friendly fraud’ may sound like a contradiction in terms, but it is in fact a serious and damaging problem for merchants and card issuers – and often a time-consuming headache for consumers too. As digital payments surge across the Asia Pacific region, so do incidences of ‘friendly fraud’. What can be done to counter this?

"You're never too young to set up a business," says one entrepreneur who sought advice from through Mercy Corps' MicroMentor Indonesia platform, part of a larger initiative to digitize Southeast Asia's largest economy.

SMEs form such a large part of the Singaporean business ecosystem and are entrusted with the personal details of such a large part of the population, that the cyber risks to SMEs are actually cyber risks to us all.

With the e-wallet economy in Asia set to have 2.6 billion users, involving over $7 trillion in transactions by 2025, this revolution in digital finance is transforming how consumers and markets operate, empowering businesses and boosting financial inclusion. Here’s how Asia’s wallet economy differs to the West’s, the opportunities for both and the three factors propelling its rise in Asia.

With Southeast Asia's digital economy projected to hit $300 billion by 2025, it's easy to get caught up in the headlines about the meteoric rise of e-commerce in Asia. Yet, for 55% of the world’s people who are not digitally connected, the pandemic worsened the digital divide, locking them out of the digital economy.

With the emergence of open finance including open banking, the way consumers and businesses can connect with and control their data, for everything from budgeting and payments to investing and borrowing, is being reimagined and redefined.

While cashless payments are becoming more popular in Japan, major credit card companies are expanding contactless payment cards around the world, spurred by measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In this new normal, Mastercard has set its sights on Japan, and has begun to push for sustainable, contactless payments with credit functions and versatility not found in other electronic payment systems.

The World Cities Summit brought industry leaders together to share sustainable city challenges and urban solutions. On the sidelines of the City Possible™-sponsored Smart Cities Workshop, Lim Kok Kee explains how smart infrastructure makes cities safer, offers aid to those in need and shortens your commute.

Use of digital payments in Asia has grown by 2.5 times in 2020, compared to pre-Covid times. The role of payments in Asia’s overall banking landscape has expanded as well, now representing 44% of aggregate banking revenues, compared with a third as recently as 2007.

The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed e-commerce technology ahead by two years and driven a revolution in how people pay for things. According to the Mastercard New Payments Index, 94% of consumers in the Asia Pacific region say they’ll consider using at least one emerging payment technology in the next year.

Mastercard's Ari Sarker joins executives from Airwallex, Klarna and PayPal to discuss the massive shift toward digital payments in 2020, and what's in store for 2021. Here’s what they had to say.

Data decency and consumer trust are the bedrock of open banking. Head of Services for Asia Pacific Matthew Driver says decency, transparency and consumer consent are required for long-term success, and shares why open banking, if done right, will change the world.

Collaborating with competitors – is it worth it? APAC CTO Gautam Aggarwal says technology is transforming how and why companies work together, and how competitors can make the most of it.

Three steps to building a competitive data strategy.

As digital payments become a mainstay in the next normal, SMEs can overcome the sustained impacts of COVID-19 and earn customer loyalty by embracing ecommerce and touch-free transactions – without compromising on cybersecurity.

The payments giant has been building new tech platforms that help increase access to credit for small businesses.

Imagine paying using only your face, voice or a wave of the hand. Soon biometrics and the integration of AI, technology tools and social commerce will make passwords and pins things of the past. Ari Sarker and Sandeep Malhotra offer a peek into the future.

The shift from cash to a digital economy fuelled by real-time payments (RTPs) has accelerated. With financial inclusion via payments digitization at the core of most nation-building agendas, Asia now leads the world in RTPs. Asia Pacific Co-President Ari Sarker says the next challenge is connecting those infrastructures across borders.

Open banking can turn tedious processes into delightful transactions – as long as users share their data. As open banking takes off, businesses that ethically manage consumer data will see the greatest returns.

As COVID-19 wreaks havoc on businesses, those with the resources and know-how to use data and predictive analytics will have a supersized advantage over those that don’t.

Change is often a gradual process — not a big-bang event — as information, motivation and infrastructure take time to converge. But in the case of COVID-19, the need for social distancing has heightened demand for secure, quick transactions, creating ripe conditions for the rapid adoption of contactless payments which provide users with much-needed peace of mind.

While collaboration between big corporates and small fintechs isn’t always easy or organic, it’s important to focus on common goals — benefiting consumers and growing businesses. As millions emerge from COVID-19 more digitally-savvy and e-commerce-oriented, not investing in partnerships now could be costly in the long run.

Open Banking is accelerating the development of the digital financial economy. Learn how players need to adapt to the digital ecosystem to better serve the needs of consumers and SMEs.

As Asia’s banking scene makes way for more digital players, find out how we think they’ll change the game, why fintegration is the way forward and how we see the next five years playing out as digitization continues to revolutionize banking.

62% of consumers are concerned about fraud or identity theft, but only 43% of corporates are, according to a new survey conducted by Mastercard and Harvard Business Review. This perception gap is dangerous and potentially costly for companies

Globalization has carried us far but it will take more to uplift the billions that remain left behind. As technological change races on and governments grapple with innumerable challenges, it’s time for the private sector to step up.

Though women make up close to half of Singapore’s workforce, they account for little more than a quarter of all business owners. This not only holds women back, but also has consequences for the macroeconomy and society which may miss out on ground breaking ideas.

In a region of diverse financial systems, which is also home to an astonishing share of the world's digitally native population, here's what our Asia Pacific head of Data & Services sees as the three unifying factors that will transform the face of banking in Asia.

Discover the enabling factors that make the difference for women entrepreneurs in Asia. Knowing how inequalities can be expressed in various ways across the region is the first step in closing the gender gap.