Mastercard, which is one of the largest and most important payment networks in the world announced through a statement on its website his plan to eliminate the magnetic stripe bank cards, which have been with us since the 1960s, and which were one of IBM’s great contributions.
That does not mean that credit and debit cards will cease to exist, but in a few years you will not see a card with a magnetic stripe again.
Cards issued in collaboration with Mastercard will only have a security chip, contactless technology for payments through NFC and biometric technology; which combine a fingerprint with a chip to verify the identity of the owner.
A long-term plan
Mastercard details that its plans will apply to all markets in the world where it operates, although the implementation dates will change depending on the region.
Magnetic stripe cards will begin to disappear in 2024 in Europe, although in the United States it will be until 2027 when banks will no longer issue cards with this old technology.
“It’s time to fully embrace these best-in-class capabilities, which ensure consumers can pay easily, quickly and with peace of mind,” said Ajay Bhalla, president of Mastercard’s Cyber & Intelligence business.
The company says no magnetic stripe cards will be reissued by 2029, so it’s only a matter of time after that year for them to be completely phased out, at least when it comes to Mastercard cards.
It will be in 2033 when it is estimated that there will be no Mastercard with a magnetic stripe, because by then all users will have already moved to new technologies.
Do you still pay with magnetic stripe?
The answer is yes, although it is not the preferred payment method in the world. According to a study by EMVCo, until the last quarter of 2020, card transactions using the chip exceeded 95% of all transactions in all regions of the world, except the United States.
As incredible as it may seem, only 72.83% of transactions in the United States are made with a chip. In the case of Latin America, this percentage was 95.4%.
Also, Mastercard mentioned that according to a study conducted last July by Phoenix, 81% of credit and debit cardholders in the United States would feel more comfortable with a card without a magnetic stripe.
So far VISA and other international payment platforms have not announced plans in this regard to stop issuing cards with magnetic stripe.