In the world of electronic payments, four companies dominate the scenario. These are American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa. Their responsibility lies in handling the world’s majority card payments. Mastercard and Visa provide singular and distinctive offerings, and neither of the two are involved in issuing cards or credit lines. This translates to a difference between Visa and Mastercard, and also means a similarity in that all Mastercard and Visa payment cards are issued to individuals via a co-branded tie-up. These two premium companies form partnerships to provide consumers with the widest range of products. This array of options encompasses debit, credit and prepaid cards.
About Visa Credit Cards
Among one of the world’s biggest payout networks, Visa is responsible for facilitating payments via versatile channels securely. Known internationally for transacting payments through tools like Visa credit cards, any Visa credit card has the branding that tells you its a Visa card, no matter the card issuer (typically your bank or an NFBC). Several banks have relations with the Visa network as cardholders get an array of benefits from Visa branded cards. With acceptance of an international standard, you can use your Visa branded card to withdraw cash at ATMs across the world in 1.9 million ATM machines in more than 200 countries, besides hassle-free credit card use. At Finserv MARKETS, you get to know about the best Visa-based credit cards from banks like Axis Bank and SBI Bank.
About Mastercard Credit Cards
Like Visa, a Mastercard credit card is also a part of the Mastercard payment network, enabling you to get a host of services when you pay with any credit card that is co-branded with it. Mastercard credit cards have global acceptance too, and come with benefits and service standards that compete with Visa cards.
Difference between Visa & Mastercard Credit Cards
Both Mastercard and Visa are huge names in the international financial transacting world, and although they both offer vast similar benefits, there are some distinctions between the two payment networks:
- Circulation of Cards – The main difference between Visa and Mastercard is in terms of the circulation of both cards. Visa cards have a higher number of credit cards in circulation than Mastercard.
- Larger Overall – While both cards display identical card footprints across the globe, in terms of credit/debit card acceptance, Visa-based credit cards are bigger regarding transactions and volumes of purchases.
- Revenue Earned – Resembling Visa, Mastercard gains the majority of its own revenue from processing fees for services rendered and data. Nonetheless, it has a different means of characterizing fees. For Mastercard, service fees are calculated as global dollar volume percentages. Fees for data processing are small, compared to Visa, and a fixed fee for each transaction is charged to credit card issuers. Both companies have different structures for fees and charges.
Famous Last Words
Whichever credit card network you opt for, Visa or Mastercard, you can be sure of cards that suit your individual spending habits and carry several pros for you. Visa is traded higher on international stock markets and reported a higher market capitalization at $497.5 billion than Mastercard (with a market cap at $359.8 billion) as of May 2021, but both cards offer you the best in terms of use. Make sure you glance at Finserv MARKETS for the best credit cards to choose from.
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