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Mastercard seeks to deepen financial services with first office in Uganda
Mr Ali Shehryar, the Mastercard senior vice president and country manager for East Africa & Indian Ocean Islands, and Mr Victor Ndlovu, Mastercard director and head of business development in East Africa, during the opening of the Mastercard office in Kampala yesterday. Photo / Courtesy
What you need to know:
- Kampala is the eighth city across Africa in which Mastercard is establishing a physical office
Mastercard, a global Fintech company, has opened its first office in Uganda through which it will seek to deepen digital finance solutions, especially in the payments sector.
The company has for years operated through third-party collaborations without a physical presence in Uganda.
The move comes just a few months after, Mastercard, in compliance with the National Payment Systems Act 2020, obtained a Payment System Operator license from Bank of Uganda.
The license allows Mastercard to provide essential services such as settlement and clearing operations within Uganda.
Establishing a physical presence in Uganda, Mastercard indicates, is part of its broader strategy through which it is seeking to expand its footprint across Africa.
Kampala will also be the eighth city after Cairo, Casablanca, Johannesburg, Lagos, Nairobi, Port Louis, and Accra, in which Mastercard is establishing a physical presence.
Speaking in Kampala at the opening of the office yesterday, Mr Mark Elliott, the Mastercard division president for Africa, said the Uganda operations will reinforce its dedication to providing digital solutions at a time when technology has taken centre stage, especially in the financial sector.
“We are committed to leveraging our global expertise and innovative capabilities to advance payment technologies in this market,” Mr Elliott said.
Mastercard senior vice president and country manager for East Africa and Indian Ocean Islands Ali Shehryar, said Uganda presents immense opportunities for digital innovation, noting that through “our new office [It shall] serve as a hub for developing and implementing payment solutions that cater to the evolving needs of Ugandans.
He also said that Mastercard will leverage its presence in Uganda to collaborate with stakeholders in the Fintech space and beyond to develop an inclusive digital future.
Mastercard’s efforts to deepen financial technology align with government's Digital Uganda Vision, a transformative initiative that seeks to harness digital technologies for national development.
As part of this commitment, Mastercard and the Ministry of ICT recently signed a memorandum of understanding through which the two will accelerate the adoption of digital solutions that enhance government services and drive financial inclusion.
Uganda, through the Central Bank, has been seeking to achieve a cashless economy.
However, the shift has been slow with cash payments continuing to dominate the payments space despite rapid growth in the country’s digital economy.
