Mastercard launches its new Payment Passkey in India

During a keynote presentation at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai, Mastercard announced the global launch and first massive test of its new Payment Passkey service, which aims to make online shopping safer and more accessible than ever before. 

The service, which will debut first in India as a pilot with some of the country's largest payment players, including payment aggregators such as Juspay, Razorpay, and PayU, online merchants such as Bigbasket, and leading banks such as Axis Bank, will give millions of consumers more control and peace of mind when shopping online.  

Despite their growing popularity due to their ease of use, one-time passwords (OTPs) are increasingly vulnerable to online scams such as phishing, SIM card swapping, and message interception. In India, fraud cases have increased by almost 300% in the last two years, reports the Reserve Bank of India's Annual Report 2023-2024.

Payment passcodes are entering the scene. These use device-based biometric authentication methods, such as fingerprints or facial scans, but with an entirely new purpose: streamlining online shopping experiences. By replacing traditional passwords and OTPs, the Mastercard Payment Passkey Service makes transactions not only faster but also more secure against fraud and scams. With Payment Passkeys, consumers can say goodbye to the hassle of accidentally forgetting or sharing their passwords or OTPs.  

What is Mastercard Payment Passkey?

The Mastercard Payment Passkey service uses tokenization to protect a consumer's payment and biometric data, ensuring that data is not shared with third parties and is useless to fraudsters and scammers. 

The service is a tipping point for online payment:  

1. Shoppers choose their Mastercard when checking out as a guest or select a card that is already securely stored in a merchant's files.  

2. To confirm payment, users can use the features of their device's biometric authentication mechanism, such as a fingerprint, facial scan, or PIN. 

3. Once authentication is successful, the payment is completed instantly.  

“By introducing the Mastercard Payment Passkey service in India, we are driving secure online payment and our vision of a tokenized economy,” said Jorn Lambert, chief product officer of Mastercard. "We create a more transparent commerce ecosystem through innovative technology that enhances security and convenience. As we continue to lead the way in digital payments, our commitment to a tokenized future is stronger than ever."  

With its rapidly expanding payments ecosystem and advanced tokenization market, India is adopting payment access keys and enhanced biometric authentication in line with the Reserve Bank of India's goal of a more secure and resilient payments system. Payment passcodes provide speed, convenience, and security, and enhance the user's shopping experience. For businesses, it means fewer abandoned carts and less fraud. For consumers, it means faster payments and peace of mind. 

The Mastercard Payment Passkey service is designed for online or remote tokenized transactions, which today help significantly reduce fraud and increase approval rates. Combining tokenization of payment credentials with seamless biometric authentication, Mastercard combines industry standards from EMVCo, the World Wide Web Consortium, and the FIDO Alliance to accelerate and secure the payment experience. 

Following the initial pilot program in India, the company will roll out the Mastercard Payment Passkey service to more consumers and financial institutions worldwide in the coming months.  

“We are excited to partner with Mastercard to pilot their Payment Passkey service as an alternative transaction authentication method and offer our customers a non-OTP based solution for transaction management,” said Sanjeev Moghe, president and head of Cards and Payments at Axis Bank. “This will enable us to offer a more engaging in-app and user experience for customers who want enhanced security and hassle-free payments.”