MasterCard

MasterCard was founded in 1966 as the Interbank Card Association and is one of the major international card schemes. In 1968 it expanded to Mexico, Japan and Europe and changed its name to MasterCard in 1979 to reflect its "commitment to international growth".

MasterCard is essentially a payments platform and processes electronic transactions between banks, consumers, retailers and other businesses that use or accept cards featuring the MasterCard brand.

Both debit and credit cards carrying the MasterCard logo can be used anywhere in the world that also displays the symbol. They are accepted across more than 210 countries worldwide.

The organisation "fosters unique relationships among financial institutions, merchants and consumers that are built on integrity and understanding" and its vision is to "advance commerce globally".