image courtesy of Getty Images Mastercard has been stopped from issuing new debit or credit cards to domestic consumers indefinitely by India’s central bank. The Reserve Bank of India has charged the firm with breaking data storage regulations. Mastercard had not followed guidelines requiring foreign card networks to store data on Indian payments entirely in India, according to the bank. The worldwide payments service provider has not yet responded. From July 22, Mastercard will no longer be able to issue debit, credit, or prepaid cards to clients in India. Existing Mastercard customers will be unaffected by the Reserve Bank’s decision. The central bank claimed that the payments service provider had disobeyed a 2018 order mandating the storage of payments data in India. The regulator would have “unrestricted supervisory access” to payment details as a result of this. “Despite the passage of considerable time and many opportunity, the entity (Mastercard) has been deemed to be non-compliant with the Storage Payment System Data guidelines,” the RBI stated in a notification. According to the London-based payments start-up PPRO, which was quoted by the AFP news agency, Mastercard accounted for 33% of all card payments in India last year. In 2019, the company announced a one-billion-dollar investment in India over the next five years as part of its expansion plans. Due to similar transgressions earlier this year, American Express and Diners Club were barred from issuing new cards. Payment service providers based in the United States have fought hard against the 2018 order, claiming that it would raise their expenses of doing business in India. The Reserve Bank of India, on the other hand, has remained steadfast. Credit cards are accepted. IndiaAsia/n
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