MasterCard Speeds Chip Terminal Deployment for Merchants

Testing Completed in Hours, Not Days or Weeks

PURCHASE, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–MasterCard today unveiled a new EMV chip terminal testing and
certification program aimed at speeding chip adoption by U.S. merchants.

MasterCard operates a chip terminal testing and certification process
used by merchant bank acquirers and value-added resellers (VARs) before
terminals go live at checkout. The new program maintains terminal
testing and certification quality while easing in-store terminal
activation by empowering acquirers and VARs as follows:

• Acquirers will have more
  responsibility and flexibility for terminal testing as a part of their
  own internal processes and schedules. Acquirers can now follow
  recommendations and use MasterCard terminal testing procedures or they
  can choose alternative testing processes and tools that support the
  integrity of their existing procedures. MasterCard has also cut the
  number of needed tests by 58 percent, minimizing mandatory tests and
  allowing acquirers to use their discretion and expertise in deciding
  when terminals are ready for deployment.
• VARs will receive more and
  dedicated resources to help accelerate terminal deployments. The new
  resources will help VARs navigate terminal configurations, test
  processes and ramp up in-field issue resolution. For example, if the
  cardholder experience is impacted by a terminal, documentation will
  exist to assist in resolving the issue in a timely manner.
• Acquirers and VARs will benefit
  from published guidelines on standard terminal test configurations
  which will improve the testing cycle and simplify testing processes.
  Standard terminal configuration packages will be available for certain
  industry segments, such as quick-serve restaurants and big box
  retailers.

“The purpose of the EMV transition is to create more layers of security
and to help drive card fraud out of the U.S. Elavon has been working
with MasterCard and our merchant customers for over three years to
develop strategies, implement hardware and software upgrades and train
employees. By accelerating the testing and certification process,
MasterCard and Elavon can make more terminals available to more
merchants, increasing the safety of the entire payments ecosystem,” said
Guy Harris, president of Elavon North America.

EMV Chargebacks

The purpose of the EMV transition is to drive counterfeit card fraud out
of the U.S. market. MasterCard has successfully assisted EMV migrations
in approximately 150 countries and sees the current U.S. EMV migration
and chargeback levels to be consistent with other markets, following the
implementation of a liability shift.

MasterCard is adding more intelligence on its network to minimize
chargeback costs to merchants who have not yet transitioned to EMV.
As of October 1, 2015, liability shifted between issuing banks
and merchants, rewarding the party with the more secure technology by
holding the other party responsible for counterfeit card fraud. Many
merchants are seeing these costs – which previously were absorbed by
issuers – for the first time.

The MasterCard network now has checks and blocks to ensure that
chargebacks follow the liability shift guidelines. For example, the
system prevents invalid chargebacks for fraud occurring at ATMs and
automatic fuel dispensers where liability shifts do not go into effect
until October 2016 and October 2017, respectively.

MasterCard has policies in place that limit merchant exposure to
excessive chargebacks on fraudulent accounts. These limits are
applicable globally, for all types of fraud, including in store and
online. MasterCard continuously evaluates thresholds related to these
policies to ensure a balanced payment ecosystem.

“The whole industry wins when action is taken against counterfeit card
fraud. Reducing terminal certification-testing time to a couple of hours
from as long as a couple of weeks is one positive step we can take in a
more mature market. Innovations including M/Chip Fast speed chip
transaction times and are having a positive impact as is easing fraud
costs to merchants,” said Chiro Aikat, senior vice president for product
delivery-EMV for MasterCard. “We are keenly focused on our goal: driving
counterfeit card fraud out of the U.S.”

Chip Momentum Continues

MasterCard continues to see great progress in EMV adoption. The company
recently announced that almost 70 percent of all U.S.-issued MasterCard
branded consumer credit cards are now chip cards. This marks a 58
percent increase in chip cards in market since the October 1, 2015
liability shift. However, cards are just half the equation.

Chip-active merchant locations have also increased to 1.4 million, up
240 percent since October 1. This number includes 1 million chip-active
local and regional merchants, a 170 percent increase since the liability
shift.

About MasterCard

MasterCard (NYSE:MA), www.MasterCard.com,
is a technology company in the global payments industry. We operate the
world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers,
financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more
than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard products and solutions
make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running
a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more
efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MasterCardNews,
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Contacts

Media:
MasterCard
Beth Kitchener, 914-249-2058
beth.kitchener@mastercard.com