Mastercard Joins the Marco Polo Network To Advance Global Trade Through Optimized Financing

 The Marco Polo Network, a trade and working capital finance network, is welcoming Mastercard as its latest member. The network – and its over 25 member banks – are working to unlock what the World Trade Organization has identified as a potential $1.5 trillion^[1] opportunity in global trade finance.

Mastercard Track™, a B2B global trade enablement platform, and the Marco Polo Network are collaborating to provide more businesses with trusted access to Marco Polo’s trade and working capital finance solutions. Companies of all sizes will benefit from better visibility into trading relationships and easier access to financing options, beyond point to point relationships, to a global network of trading parties.

Launched in the fall of 2018, Mastercard Track unifies access to business identity information through a secure, permissioned repository of more than 210 million registered entities worldwide. Interoperating with leading business to business digital providers, Mastercard Track reduces the time it takes for businesses to identify, vet and onboard new trading partners – and simplifies the end-to-end payment process.

Better and faster access to critical information will work as a catalyst for businesses using the Marco Polo network – which is powered by the trusted Corda blockchain technology from enterprise software company R3 – to tap into working capital provided by global financial institutions.

“When there is trust, there will be trade”, commented Claire Thompson, EVP Enterprise Partnerships at Mastercard. “By connecting our Mastercard Track platform with a leading group such as Marco Polo we’re further lowering the barriers to access trade finance for business of all sizes globally. We’re excited about scaling a connected digital trade ecosystem together.”

“Adding Mastercard as our latest member is an important step for realizing our vision towards a more agile global trade environment”, said Daniel Cotti, Managing Director, Center of Excellence, Banking & Trade at TradeIX. “The scale and reach of Mastercard will complement and enable the large number of financial service providers who have pioneered the formation of the Marco Polo network over the past couple of years.”

“With Mastercard and Marco Polo joining forces, we can even better address some of the most pressing challenges that are holding back businesses wanting to trade globally”, commented Jacques Levet, Transaction Banking Head EMEA, BNP Paribas. “Better flow of information across the whole value chain has the potential to drive significant benefits for all network members.”

“The future of enterprise technology is in integrated systems which break down siloes and enable seamless interaction between services”, said David E. Rutter, CEO of R3. “That is exactly the promise of blockchain platforms like Corda across enterprise activity. Through this collaboration between the Marco Polo Network and Mastercard, I’m excited to see the opportunities to connect together and create more joined up, efficient and effective trade finance processes for both institutions and enterprises.”

[1] World Trade Statistical Review 2018

About Mastercard:

Mastercard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology company in the global payments industry. Our global payments processing network connects consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. Mastercard products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MastercardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.

About Marco Polo

The Marco Polo Network is the fastest growing trade and working capital finance network in the world. It is a joint undertaking with technology firm TradeIX, working with enterprise software firm R3, the world’s leading financial institutions, and their corporate clients. The Marco Polo Network also includes constituents of the wider trade ecosystem such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) providers and logistic companies.

Launched in 2017, the Marco Polo Network is facilitating trade and working capital finance solutions between banks and their corporate clients creating better customer experience and seamless data integration, while reducing costs, time and risk. It is powered by cloud technology, open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and Corda blockchain technology.

The mandate of the Marco Polo Network is to provide a dramatically improved customer experience using cutting-edge trade and working capital procedures, to enable seamless data integration and exchange between trading parties. This type of network provides the basis for revenue growth and a simultaneous reduction in costs, time and risk.

Learn more at www.marcopolo.finance

About R3

R3 is an enterprise blockchain software firm working with a broad ecosystem of more than 300 firms across multiple industries from both the private and public sectors to develop on Corda, its open-source blockchain platform, and Corda Enterprise, a commercial version of Corda for enterprise usage.

R3’s global team of over 200 professionals in 13 countries is supported by over 2,000 technology, financial, and legal experts drawn from its global member base.

The Corda platform is already being used in industries from financial services to healthcare, shipping, insurance and more. It records, manages and executes institutions’ financial agreements in perfect synchrony with their peers, creating a world of frictionless commerce.

www.r3.com

Press contacts:

Mastercard: 

Bernhard Mors | +49 173 69 78 755 | bernhard.mors@mastercard.com

Marco Polo Network:

Oliver Belin (TradeIX on behalf of Marco Polo Network) | +1 404 428 1024 | oliverb@tradeix.com