Mastercard targets number-free and passwordless payments by 2030  

Mastercard has revealed plans to revolutionise online purchases by phasing out manual card entry and passwords in favour of biometric authentication methods such as facial recognition and fingerprints by the end of the decade.  

Tokenisation, a technology introduced a decade ago to safeguard personal and payment data will be combined with biometric authentication to eliminate the need for one-time or static passwords.  

Mastercard’s vision includes the transition to numberless physical cards as the standard, aiming to reduce the risk of fraud in case of lost or stolen cards. 

Tokenisation has been shown to decrease cart abandonment and increase transaction approvals by three to six percentage points, contributing to an additional $2 billion in global sales for merchants each month.  

Moreover, the risk of fraud is reduced, benefiting banks, consumers, and businesses alike. 

Currently, over 30% of Mastercard transactions globally are tokenised through the Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES), with markets like India nearing full adoption for e-commerce transactions.  

The Mastercard Payment Passkey Service, initially launched in India, Singapore, and the UAE, continues to expand worldwide. Several partners deploying this technology include Axis Bank, BigBasket, Juspay, noon Payments, Lenskart, Razorpay, PayU, and Tap Payments. 

The Click to Pay feature is gaining traction as many issuers are integrating it into their card portfolios.  

Mastercard chief product officer Jorn Lambert said: “Just like the transition from signing and swiping to tapping cards, we’re now moving from manual entry and passwords to seamless and secure payments in just a few clicks. With this shift we are protecting sensitive data through advanced encryption and tokenisation technologies. 

“As payments continue to be embedded across a range of commerce experiences, we’re leading the way to a global economy that empowers everyone – providing consumers with greater control, convenience and peace-of-mind while unlocking new sales for merchants, and lowering fraud for issuers.”  

Recently, Mastercard partnered with Tap Payments for the global launch of Click to Pay with Payment Passkey service.