MasterCard (MA) is the second largest electronic payments processor by purchase volume behind Visa in the world. MasterCard does not issue credit cards directly, but licenses its brand to banks, who then issue co-branded cards (such as the Chase MasterCard). MasterCard makes money by charging merchant fees on individual transactions and by charging the credit card issuers licensing fees and a small percentage of the total dollar amount spent on each card.

MasterCard is susceptible to the adverse economic environment because its revenues are highly concentrated within customers and countries. 31% of its total revenue was from its five largest customers and it’s five highest revenue generating countries besides the U.S. are the UK, Canada, Brazil, and Australia.^[1] Of the additional 200 countries and 160 currencies that it operates in, no country other than the United States accounts for more than 10% of its revenues. ^[1]. During the past few years, MasterCard’s revenue source has gradually shifted from card-based assessment fees to transaction and licensing fees. In 2007, 73.8% of net revenues came from transaction and licensing fees and 26.2% came from assessments ^[2]

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