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Mastercard (MA) Chosen by Citi for Better Customer Experience

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Mastercard Incorporated (MA - Free Report) has been selected by Citi as its network partner for its Citi Plex Account on Google Pay. Google is launching a waitlist for the Citi Plex Account, a new digital checking and savings account made with financial wellness and mobile functionality on the Google Pay application.

Citi will be able to gain traction from Mastercard’s assets and capabilities like tokenization. This will help create a digital experience for its customers, leading to seamless transactions. Individuals with a Citi Plex Account will get a Mastercard, an auto provisioned instant digital debit card with an option to get a contactless-enabled, physical debit Mastercard on request. This, in turn, allows access to Citi’s national network of more than 60,000 fee-free ATMs. Citi Plex customers now have enough choices of payment at their disposal through either debit card, online or smartphones.

Rise in Digital Transactions

The COVID crisis accelerated the use of electronic forms of payment with much greater adoption of digital and contactless solutions. The digital form of payments is expected to sustain beyond the pandemic. Key trends include a preference for contactless transactions, rapid uptake of e-commerce and an increased aversion to cash, merchant requirements for omnichannel acceptance and a need to automate business-to-business payments. This in turn, boosted more tie-ups among technology and financial players so that consumers can experience better solutions.
Each of these provides an opportunity for the company’s business to expedite its digital transition in the payment space. A surge in online shopping will fuel the usage of debit or credit cards and other forms of digital payment methods.

Last month, this leading company extended its relation with BOB Financial Solutions Ltd., which is a Non-Banking Financial Company, wholly owned by the Bank of Baroda. The latest collaboration between Mastercard and BFSL saw the launch of four new credit cards with the intention of serving a wide customer base, ranging from the affluent to those on the brink of using credit cards for the first time.

All these digital initiatives poise the company well for long-term growth.

Zacks Rank and Price Performance

Shares of this currently Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have rallied 17.4% compared with the industry’s growth of 10.2%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



However, other companies in the same space, namely Discover Financial Services (DFS - Free Report) , Synchrony Financial (SYF - Free Report) and American Express Co. (AXP - Free Report) have lost 7.4%, 18.3% and 3.9%, respectively, over the same time frame.

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