BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 22. Mastercard plans to introduce the latest innovations in Kazakhstan and the region, Rafal Trepka, CEO of Mastercard in Central Asia, told Trend in an exclusive interview.
Multi-directionality and diversification
"Mastercard is a successful fintech with a more than 50-year history that operates in 210 countries. With the help of unique technologies and innovations, we create the present and determine the future in finance and in other areas of life and business across the world, including Kazakhstan," he said.
Trepka noted that starting at the top level, the core element of the company's global strategy today is multi-directional, which is about providing choice to cardholders and business customers.
"Now the focus of payment development is to offer the client freedom of choice: how, where and with what to pay. We want to give our partners, be it banks or retailers, the opportunity to use everything they are already accustomed to, and also help create a unique payment experience for customers. For example, a client may have different currencies and crypto assets in his account. And we will offer him instant, seamless and secure conversion and payment anywhere in the world," he said.
As he noted, the second element of Mastercard's strategy is diversification.
"Diversification is firstly about who and how we serve. Historically, our main partners have been banks. Today, the number of partners has expanded to government agencies, fintechs, technology companies, merchants, retailers, etc. We have created a powerful payments ecosystem. We are doing this both at the global level and in Kazakhstan," Trepka said.
The role of Mastercard in digitalization of Kazakhstan
According to him, Kazakhstan strives to become the leader of Central Asia in digitalization of all spheres of life, including the development of the digital economy and fintech.
"Thanks to synergy between the government and the private sector, the country has seen explosive growth in cashless payments in recent years. In 2022, the volume of non-cash card transactions in the country amounted to 102.8 trillion tenge ($222.4 billion) or 99 percent of GDP. Against this background, the share of non-cash transactions across the country increased to 82.5 percent. Thus, Kazakhstan can already be called a cashless country, he said. In large cities - Almaty or Astana, people almost no longer use cash. Technologies such as contactless payment, Tap on Phone, digital wallets have become commonplace in Kazakhstan and part of the daily lives of millions of people. Many of them may even feel inconvenience when they have to pay in cash somewhere," he said.
Trepka added that in this regard, the role of Mastercard as an international technological player in the development and implementation of these solutions in the country is recognized by all market participants, colleagues and partners.
"On a daily basis, we help our key partners, banks, to develop multi-rail consumer solutions. The world is developing rapidly, new customer segments are constantly being formed. Banks strive to provide them with additional options for transferring money and payments to suit their changing demands and needs. And we help them provide these solutions by offering flexible configuration of payment methods and transfers, including cross-border transfers," he said.
Regional CEO pointed out that in the long term, Mastercard is looking at Web 3.0 and focused on payments and products across the country and interaction with government agencies to implement them.
"We are talking about an instant payment system, digital tenge and open banking. Our goal is to “land” these services in Kazakhstan in cooperation with the National Bank and second-tier banks. If we talk about specific solutions, first of all, for our cardholders there is Digital First or Digital Only technology, which implies a complete refusal to use plastic cards, with the replacement of these cards with a tokenized card in a smartphone. For those who still need a card, we, together with banks, issue cards made of biodegradable plastic. As you know, Mastercard has committed to eliminating plastic cards by 2028. There are also specially shaped cards for those who have poor vision, the so-called Touch Card, which, for example, we issued jointly with the Kazakh bank "Altyn," he said.
Development of tourism and cybersecurity solutions
Rafal Trepka noted that Mastercard is a key technology partner to the global travel and tourism industry, offering solutions, expertise and consulting both globally and locally.
"Our data shows that the travel industry has bounced back following the coronavirus pandemic, with people around the world wanting to travel more, explore new destinations and gain invaluable experiences. Kazakhstan has impressive opportunities for the development of all types of tourism, and we actively cooperate with various organizations - city halls, national companies in the field of tourism. We provide Kazakhstani partners with access to our Data Tourism Insights Platform, which allows them to use analytics to develop foreign and domestic tourism in the country. We are also ready to provide technology and global expertise in the implementation of various programs and promote Kazakhstan as a touristic destination among the 2.3 billion Mastercard holders in the world through the Priceless platform. We are confident that thanks to our cooperation with partners from Kazakhstan, the tourism industry in the country will soon realize its enormous potential," he said.
Regional CEO added that Mastercard is also focused on developing cybersecurity solutions in Kazakhstan.
"The use of biometrics for identity verification is already working in many countries and, as far as I know, is perceived positively in Kazakhstan: according to our research, 30 percent of respondents in Kazakhstan fully support it. In Kazakhstan there is now a very large field of activity and many areas where it is possible to implement both financial and non-financial solutions from Mastercard. We actively help to develop the country's economy and its people because we are building a sustainable world where everyone can prosper. So we don't intend to stop," he said.
Choosing Almaty as a regional hub
As Trepka pointed out, Mastercard has been and will continue to be an important participant in the payment environment in Kazakhstan, along with other local and international players.
"It should be noted that the issuance of payment cards together with our partner banks is, although an important part of our activities in the country, but does not reflect the full variety of projects and areas that we are working on today in Kazakhstan. We are currently developing and planning to introduce the latest innovations in the country and region, sharing wide international experience, supporting projects not only in the digitalization of the economy, but also in the field of education, culture, etc.," he said.
As an example, Rafal Trapka pointed out Mastercard’s decision to choose Almaty as a regional hub in the CIS, Central and Eastern Europe for the development of its consulting business.
"This decision was supported by the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev during a recent bilateral meeting between the country’s leadership and Mastercard top management in New York as part of the visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United States. The meeting discussed issues of cooperation in the development of e-government and the digital economy, the introduction of innovation and digitalization as a tool for increasing the efficiency of public administration, increasing transparency and ensuring more inclusive and sustainable economic growth," he said.
According to him, together with the National Bank of Kazakhstan Mastercard is working to provide expert and technological support as part of the implementation projectsrelated to the national payment system.
Kazakhstan Digital Country Partnership Program
"These and other initiatives were reflected in the framework Agreement signed between the Minister of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan BagdatMussin and the Global Head of Public Sector, Executive Vice President for Strategic Growth of Mastercard Nicola Villa. As part of this Agreement, Mastercard, with the advisory support of the Ministry, intends to develop and implement a five-year digital partnership program in Kazakhstan - the Kazakhstan Digital Country Partnership," Trepka said.
As Regional CEO noted that cooperation will include initiatives such as promoting the Kazakh GovTech model using the Mastercard global network, expanding access to financial services through the digitalization of payments in various areas (government payments, agriculture, education, etc.), cooperation in the promotion and development of IT exports, e-commerce, digitalization of SMEs, fintech ecosystems, supporting Kazakhstan's Smart Cities program with a key focus on the tourism and urban transport sectors, promoting the creation of a secure and sustainable digital ecosystem through cybersecurity and anti-fraud.
"The parties will pay particular attention to cooperation in promoting projects related to digital and financial literacy of various segments of the population. By concluding the Kazakhstan Digital Country Partnership, we are ready to take our cooperation with all stakeholders in Kazakhstan to a new, deeper and more comprehensive level. From Almaty, we plan to develop business and human capital in the banking sector for the entire Central Asian region. This will benefit everyone - business, people, society, the country as a whole. For companies and entrepreneurs, we bring global advanced technologies and share our international experience. To develop local specialists, we train personnel, provide jobs, and raise professionals. We are also creating numerous training programs for SMEs and students, who will also work in various fields and open their own businesses tomorrow," he said.
Trepka pointed out that ultimately, this will affect the country's economy and GDP growth.
"Another recent example that I would like to mention is cooperation with the municipalities of large cities in Kazakhstan. For example, we recently agreed that Mastercard will implement projects in the field of digital technologies with the mayor’s office of Almaty, the largest metropolis in Kazakhstan. We have identified a number of areas for cooperation, including the introduction of innovative solutions in the cashless payment system, and we will also provide the mayor’s office with access to our digital platform Mastercard Tourism Insights. Almaty is the most popular tourist destination in the country and access to our platform will allow to analyze a lot of data, which will help when making decisions for the development of the tourism industry: create a behavioral profile of a tourist, evaluate his preferences when choosing accommodations and objects of visit, monitor the airport’s congestion in dynamics and much more. This cooperation will help accelerate the development of Almaty as a Smart City, create a comfortable urban environment for both residents and foreign guests, and expand the city’s tourism potential," Regional CEO said.
According to him, these are just a few recent examples of Mastercard's work in Kazakhstan.
"I gave even more examples in an interview with your publication in July of this year (read more here). Therefore, we sincerely believe that our work in Kazakhstan is very necessary and useful for everyone, and will contribute to the formation of a more open, safe, efficient and transparent environment for all participants of the economy," he said.
Mastercard's transport solutions in Kazakhstan
"Using our advanced technologies and global experience, we have implemented many projects in cooperation with transport companies, national carriers, in the field of public transport throughout Kazakhstan. Having started work on introducing cashless payment in public transport in 2015, when the world's 5th contactless cashless fare payment system was launched in Almaty subway, Mastercard continues to implement solutions for public transport. In Kazakhstani cities, in collaboration with local partners, projects are being launched to pay for travel with bank cards," he said.
Trepka noted that Mastercard launches various promotions for cardholders to support cashless payment in public transport.
"For example, together with the Almaty Subway, we announced that by the end of 2023, when paying with smartphones and smart watches that support Google Pay, Apple Pay or Samsung Pay, to which a Mastercard is linked, the fare will cost only 5 tenge, instead of 100 tenge. Such promotions provide customers with the opportunity not only to appreciate the convenience, speed and security of payments through mobile devices with Mastercard cards, but also to significantly save on daily expenses," he noted.
Support for women's small and micro businesses in Kazakhstan
In addition, as Regional CEO noted, in collaboration with the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, it is planned to support small and micro businesses created by women in Kazakhstan.
"We are also continually expanding access to our Girls4Tech STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) curriculum for 8-12 year olds through a range of new and creative online educational resources. This program helps teachers and parents inspire students to study and master new areas of knowledge in Spanish, Arabic, Polish, French and other languages. Mastercard supported translation of educational materials into Kazakh language and now on the website Girls4Tech, which was launched in collaboration with the educational company Scholastic, parents and teachers can download lessons in Kazakh language," he said.
Trepka added that ongoing Mastercard's research reveals the challenges women entrepreneurs face and the key issues that need to be addressed to advance women's role in sustainable and inclusive economies.