Mastercard Excellence Award 2021 Winners Announced in Bangladesh

To honor top-performing partner banks, financial institutions, and merchants, and mark 30 years of its operations in Bangladesh, Mastercard yesterday announced the winners of the ‘Mastercard Excellence Award 2021’– Next and Beyond, at a ceremony in Dhaka, said a press release. The event also commemorated 50 years of Bangladesh’s independence. Mastercard was the first global payment technology company to set up a dedicated liaison office in Bangladesh in 2013.

The award ceremony was attended by M. A. Mannan, MP, Honorable Minister, Ministry of Planning, Peoples Republic of Bangladesh as the Chief Guest; Md. Khurshid Alam, Executive Director, Bangladesh Bank, Bangladesh Bank as the Special Guest; Helen LaFave, Charge d’ affairs, U.S. Embassy Dhaka as the Guest of Honor and other senior officials from partner banks, fintech partners, dignitaries, and merchants.

The Mastercard Excellence Award was instituted in 2019 to recognize banks, fintech, and other institutions for their contributions towards driving financial inclusion. Since it started operations in Bangladesh 30 years ago, Mastercard has supported the country’s financial inclusion goals by enabling & building a seamless, secure, and efficient digital payments ecosystem for the people of Bangladesh. In its third year, the Mastercard Excellence Award recognized partners across categories for their contribution to innovation and success in driving business growth.

Syed Mohammad Kamal, Country Manager, Bangladesh, Mastercard said, “From the very start Mastercard’s focus has been to promote financial inclusion by providing innovative digital payment solutions to the people of Bangladesh. By combining technology and partnerships, Mastercard strives to bring best-in-class solutions to build a safe, secure, and seamless payment ecosystem in the country and contribute to the government’s vision of Digital Bangladesh.

Celebrating its 30^th anniversary in the country, Mastercard extends its deepest gratitude and appreciation for its valued partner banks, fintech partners, merchants, regulators, and the Government of Bangladesh for their continued support, especially during the tough times of the pandemic and in making everyday commerce activities easier, safer and more efficient for everyone.”

Mastercard established its business relationship in Bangladesh with the first acceptance in 1991 and the first branded plastic card in 1997, building on a solid foundation of operations in the country. Today, the company leads the way in driving financial inclusion with its worldwide expertise in technology and the global payment sector.

In the last 30 years of operations, Mastercard has partnered with leading financial and commercial institutions including AB Bank Limited, Bank Asia Limited, Al-Arafah Islami Bank Limited, BRAC Bank, Dhaka Bank Limited, Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited, Eastern Bank Limited, Islami Bank Limited, LankaBangla Finance, Mutual Trust Bank Limited, National Bank Limited, NCC Bank Limited, The Premier Bank Limited, Prime Bank Limited, Pubali Bank Limited, Social Islami Bank Limited, Southeast Bank Limited, Standard Chartered Bank, The City Bank Limited and United Commercial Bank.

Earlier this year, the company also announced collaborations with partners to bring innovative payment solutions for the people of Bangladesh- launched HomeSend, the world’s largest multilateral remittance service to enable money transfer from 136 countries to Bangladesh’s 90 million residents; white label ‘Bangla QR’ to bring micro merchants online; first-ever super premium Mastercard TARA World Credit card specially designed for women as well; and country’s first Mastercard Titanium Millennial Credit card designed for Bangladesh’s Youth.

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