MasterCard’s strength draws in part from its unique, three-tiered business model. Our success is built on a solid foundation—namely, our business model as a franchisor, processor and advisor.

Franchisor
Through the thousands of financial institutions that are MasterCard’s customers, the company markets a strong portfolio of brands and products worldwide, including MasterCard, Maestro®, Cirrus® and MasterCard® PayPass™. With these, MasterCard opens the door to commerce at an unsurpassed network of more than 28.5 million acceptance locations around the world and, in many cases, guarantees payment through its system.

Processor
MasterCard’s streamlined and intelligent approach to processing enables efficient commerce on a global scale. It is based on an agile network, one of the largest VPNs in the world, which offers unparalleled speed, integration, and reliability. MasterCard helps banks and merchants grow by enabling rapid adoption of new ways to pay and offering customized solutions that deliver value through technology.

Advisor
MasterCard provides industry-leading insight and solutions that advance commerce on a global scale. Using sophisticated processing and data-mining capabilities, for example, MasterCard tracks consumer behavior and buying trends around the globe and provides that knowledge to its customers. Through MasterCard Advisors, the largest global professional services firm focused exclusively on the payments industry, the company provides strategic and operational solutions covering the payments process from end to end.