Mastercard and TerraPay have announced a collaboration to expand digital payment capabilities for wallet providers and their users globally.

This partnership aims to equip mobile money wallets, fintechs, and banks with advanced infrastructure, enabling seamless transactions at over 150 million Mastercard acceptance locations worldwide using NFC technology.

Through this Mastercard TerraPay digital wallet collaboration, wallet customers will be able to make contactless payments at physical points of sale, leveraging the widespread Mastercard network.

 Wallet providers will benefit from the combined infrastructure and technology developed by both organisations.

A key component of the partnership is TerraPay’s newly introduced global payment interoperability platform, Xend.

The platform is set to speed up go-to-market strategies for wallet partners and streamline the process of launching digital wallet solutions.

TerraPay founder and CEO Ambar Sur commented, “At TerraPay, our mission is to make every wallet roam — to work anywhere, just like your card does. For years, we’ve connected banks, wallets, and money transfer organisations across 150+ countries. Our collaboration with Mastercard takes that mission a step further. Together, we’re bringing true payment interoperability to wallets globally, enabling them to pay at millions of acceptance points and empowering people everywhere to move and pay safely, instantly, and without borders.”

According to Mastercard’s annual 2024 report, contactless payments now account for 70% of in-person Mastercard transactions worldwide.

The report notes that contactless payments are up to ten times faster than other face-to-face payment methods, and that contactless-enabled accounts typically see higher average spending compared to non-contactless accounts.

Highlighted the impact of the partnership Mastercard executive vice president, Core Payments for EEMEA (Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa) Prakriti Singh said, “At Mastercard, we are enabling innovation and global reach for digital wallets, which serve as important drivers of financial inclusion. Collaborations with key ecosystem players like Terrapay play a key role in scaling the positive impact via their multiple wallet partners and simplifying the implementation process.”

Digital wallets continue to fuel the secular shift in payment behaviour, particularly in emerging markets.

They offer consumers secure payment technology and the potential for global scale, encouraging greater adoption and usage.

In addition to supporting online transactions, digital wallets are increasingly being used for contactless payments at physical points of sale, a trend driven by the speed and security these solutions provide to both shoppers and merchants, stated the companies.

Since its inception, TerraPay has focused on building a global interoperable wallet network aimed at advancing financial inclusion, including in hard-to-reach markets.

The company is headquartered in London and has offices in key cities such as Bangalore, Dubai, Bogotá, Dares Salaam, Kampala, and Singapore, reflecting its broad international presence.