Mastercard and Transferwise are expanding their partnership, enabling the issuance of cards in any market where Mastercard is accepted and TransferWise is licensed.

The agreement marks the expansion of a relationship begun in 2018, when cross-border transfer firm TransferWise issued its first debit card in Europe. Since then, it has issued over one million Mastercards globally.

The company currently partners with Mastercard across the EEA, US, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, with Japan due to launch later this year. The expansion of the relationship will allow a route to market in nearly all countries around the world to enable multi-currency borderless accounts for its customer base of expats, freelancers, businesses and travellers.

In a statement, TransferWise said customers are increasingly using the borderless account as an international banking alternative, with new features including direct debits and instant international payments to friends.

The Mastercard and TransferWise teams have also worked collaboratively to enable Apple and Google Pay, Fitbit and Garmin Pay across the EEA for all TransferWise cards.

Kristo Käärmann, chief executive and co-founder of TransferWise, said: “As we think about the next phase in our international expansion, we want to ensure this process stays just as convenient whether you need a debit card in the UK or Japan - building upon our partnership with Mastercard is important in maintaining that high level of convenience around the world.”

Andrea Scerch, president of processing services at Mastercard, said: “Broadening TransferWise’s global reach will enable millions more people around the world to benefit from Mastercard’s worldwide acceptance footprint and TransferWise’s innovative multi-currency payment solutions.”

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