# Mastercard

Mastercard is a Public Company based in Foster City, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Public Company
- **Headquarters:** Foster City, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Foster City, CA, United States
- **Founded:** 1966
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** mastercard.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/mastercard

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Mastercard Incorporated is a publicly traded investment firm. It has made one investment. The firm focuses on the Health Care sector.

## Sectors

- FinTech
- Infrastructure
- Cybersecurity
- AI/ML
- Digital Health
- Enterprise Software

## Offices

- Menlo Park
- London
- New York
- Boston

## People

- Michael Miebach — CEO
- Ajay Banga — Former CEO

## Questions

### How does Mastercard generate revenue?

Mastercard earns revenue primarily from transaction processing fees, cross-currency conversion fees, and value-added services such as analytics and cybersecurity. The company does not issue cards or extend credit — instead, it licenses its network to issuing banks and acquirers (per its annual 10-K filing, 2024).

### What distinguishes Mastercard from Visa?

Both operate as four-party payment networks connecting issuers, acquirers, merchants, and cardholders. Mastercard has historically derived a larger share of revenue from value-added services (about 27% in 2024) and cross-border transactions. Visa tends to have higher domestic volume in the US (per public filings, 2024).

### Does Mastercard make direct investments in startups?

Mastercard operates the Start Path program, a global fintech engagement platform that provides mentorship and potential follow-on investment, but it is not a traditional venture capital fund. The company has made minority strategic investments in select fintech companies, primarily through its corporate development arm (per Mastercard Start Path materials, 2024).

### What is Mastercard's stance on cryptocurrency?

Mastercard has supported select cryptocurrency debit and prepaid cards since 2021, enabling conversions at millions of partner merchants. The company also filed patents for blockchain-based settlement but has not taken a balance sheet position in digital assets as of 2025 (per Mastercard press releases, 2021–2024).

### How is Mastercard regulated?

Mastercard is subject to bank card association regulations globally, including the European Interchange Fee Regulation and the US Durbin Amendment. The company faces ongoing antitrust scrutiny in the EU and UK regarding interchange fees and merchant routing rules (per European Commission proceedings, 2019–2025).

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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