Payment giant Mastercard announced on Monday the launch of Pay Local, a global service designed to expand the reach of digital wallets by providing access to Mastercard’s 2 billion cardholders. This service enables users to link their credit or debit cards directly to a local digital wallet, bypassing the need for prepaid accounts and offering greater payment flexibility for both consumers and tourists. Mastercard elaborated on the offering:
With Mastercard Pay Local, digital wallet providers will gain access to more than 2 billion Mastercard cardholders, enabling card-based payments and providing more choice to residents and international travelers.
Beyond individual users, the service offers benefits to local businesses, helping them accept digital payments without requiring extensive infrastructure upgrades.
Expanding on Mastercard’s existing collaborations with major wallet providers such as Alipay in China and Octopus in Hong Kong, Pay Local also enhances payment options for tourists, allowing them to make transactions as conveniently as they would in their home countries. Mastercard’s chief product officer, Jorn Lambert, highlighted the focus on community impact, noting: “Mastercard continues to set new standards for the payments industry by offering global solutions that make a local impact.” Through Pay Local, Mastercard aims to support financial inclusion by widening digital wallet adoption, which benefits local economies and improves traveler experiences.
The announcement underscored that Pay Local will primarily target regions where digital wallets are dominant, such as Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Africa. Mastercard stated: “Leading wallets in Asia Pacific, such as DANA in Indonesia, Touch ‘n Go in Malaysia, Bakong in Cambodia, and LankaPay in Sri Lanka, will leverage Mastercard Pay Local to allow consumers to make payments at more than 35 million merchants that accept these wallets.” Mastercard further explained:
The service is also geared towards markets where digital wallets are widely used for everyday purchases, such as Latin America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.