Financials · NYSE: MA
Mastercard: how the business works
Mastercard runs a card payment network that financial institutions pay to use, with net revenue of $32.8 billion in FY2025.
By Hardik Bhandare · Checked against filings: . Editorial policy. Corrections
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Mastercard Incorporated · Purchase, New York · Founded 1966
Updated for Q3 FY2026 · checked
- Net revenue, FY2025
- $32.8B
- Operating income, FY2025
- $18.9B
- Net income, FY2025
- $15.0B
- Mastercard and Maestro cards, Dec 31, 2025
- 3.7 billion
- Employees, Dec 31, 2025
- About 39,800
The short version
Mastercard in 5 points
1 · What it sells
Mastercard runs a card payment network and sells services around it, with net revenue of $32.8 billion in FY2025, and it does not issue cards or lend.
2 · Who pays it
Card issuers and acquirers pay Mastercard, which does not split revenue by payer; FY2025 net revenue was 59.4% payment network fees and 40.6% value-added services.
3 · What it keeps from $100
Of every $100 that came in during FY2025, Mastercard kept $45.0 as net income, after a $504 million litigation provision and including about $135 million of government grants; operating income was $57.6 per $100 of net revenue.
4 · Where the operating profit comes from
Mastercard reports one segment, Payment Solutions, so it gives no split of its $18.9 billion of FY2025 operating income by product or region.
5 · The one thing to watch
Rebates and incentives to customers were 51.3% of Mastercard's network fees in FY2025, up from 46.7% in FY2021.
Sources: From Mastercard's FY2022 and FY2025 10-Ks · checked
See the full receipt and the management scorecard below
01Where the money goes · FY2025
Where does $100 of Mastercard's money go?
Mastercard · FY2025
Receipt for every $100
| Personnel | $21.8 |
|---|---|
| Advertising, data processing, fees, other running costs | $15.0 |
| Depreciation and amortization | $3.4 |
| Litigation provision | $1.5 |
| Interest and investment losses | $2.4 |
| Income tax | $10.8 |
| Kept as net income | $45.0 |
| Total | $100 |
Each line = amount ÷ total money in × 100. Lines may not add to exactly $100 because of rounding.
How this is worked out
Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K. Of every $100 that came in during FY2025 (net revenue plus investment and other income): each line = line ÷ $33.3 billion × 100. Rebates and incentives to customers are already taken out of net revenue.
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02The business in one line
What does Mastercard do?
Financial institutions that issue cards or sign up stores pay Mastercard fees to use its network; staff is its largest cost, and about $45 of every $100 that comes in stays as net income.
- Mastercard's FY2025 net revenue of $32.8 billion was 59.4% payment network fees and 40.6% value-added services and solutions.
- Network fees (assessments) added up to $40.0 billion, but Mastercard gave $20.5 billion back to customers as rebates and incentives (Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K).
03Who pays it
Who pays Mastercard?
Card issuers
Not disclosed
Financial institutions that issue Mastercard cards to people and businesses and pay fees to use the network. Share not disclosed.
Acquirers
Not disclosed
Financial institutions that sign up stores and handle their card payments. Share not disclosed.
Other market participants
Not disclosed
Other businesses that use Mastercard's network or buy its services. Share not disclosed.
How spread out the customers are
Mastercard does not split revenue by type of payer, and consumers are not billed by Mastercard. Its five largest customers gave about $6.9 billion, or 21%, of FY2025 net revenue; none gave more than 10%. Customers are not named. About 29% of FY2025 net revenue was generated in the U.S., and no other country was above 10%.
- Top 5 customers
- 21%
04Why it makes money
Why does Mastercard make money?
More cards, stores and payments run over the same network, so revenue has grown faster than costs.
Mastercard's operating income was $57.6 per $100 of net revenue in FY2025, up from $53.4 in FY2021. The catch: rebates and incentives to customers rose from 46.7% to 51.3% of network fees (assessments) over the same years.
Operating income per $100 of net revenue
$53.4$57.6
FY2021 to FY2025
- Banks issue Mastercard cards to people and businesses
- Acquirers sign up stores to accept them
- Payments run on Mastercard's network
- Mastercard charges fees on volume, transactions and cross-border payments
- It pays rebates and incentives to win and keep bank customers
- More cards and stores bring more payments and more demand for its services
↺ Step 6 feeds back into step 1.
05Business segments · FY2025; revenue categories (Mastercard reports one segment)
Which businesses make up Mastercard?
Payment network
59%Mastercard reports one segment, Payment Solutions, so there is no profit split; these are its two revenue categories. This one is network fees minus $20.5 billion of rebates and incentives.
Revenue $19.5B
Value-added services and solutions
41%Services sold beyond moving payments. Its share of net revenue rose from 36.8% in FY2021.
Revenue $13.3B
How the mix changed
- Payment network
- Value-added services and solutions
Revenue by segment, FY2021 to FY2025.
US$
See the numbers
06The numbers · Consolidated · US$
How has Mastercard done?
Revenue
$32.8BFY2025
Net revenue rose every year, from $18.9 billion in FY2021 to $32.8 billion in FY2025, and was $27.5 billion in the first nine months of FY2026, up 15%.
US$
See the numbers
Net profit
$15.0BFY2025
Net income rose from $8.7 billion in FY2021, a year that included a $645 million gain on equity investments, to $15.0 billion in FY2025.
US$
See the numbers
Profit kept per $100 of revenue
$45.6FY2025
Net income per $100 of net revenue stayed between $44.6 and $46.0 from FY2021 to FY2025.
$ of profit per $100 of revenue (net margin)
See the numbers
Free cash flow
$17.2BFY2025
Cash from operations minus spending on property and equipment was $17.2 billion in FY2025; Mastercard also capitalized $726 million of software, a separate investing line.
US$ · cash from operations minus spending on plants and equipment
See the numbers
See all yearly numbers
EBITDA here = operating income plus depreciation and amortization (from the cash flow statement). Fiscal years are the company's own (Dec 31 (calendar year); Q3 FY2026 is July–September 2026.). Net profit is the share belonging to the company's owners.
Download Mastercard's yearly and quarterly numbers (CSV, with source ids)
Learn: Fiscal years that don't end in December: Nvidia's FY2027 explained · Stock-based compensation and dilution: pay that becomes shares
Sources (10)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Dec 31, 2023)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2024 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q1 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q2 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q3 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q1 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q2 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
07Who runs it
Who runs Mastercard, and did they deliver?
Michael Miebach
Chief Executive Officer and Director · since 2021
CEO since January 2021. 2025 total pay was $35,422,518; the median employee's was $124,650, a ratio of 284 to 1. Say-on-pay received 94.9% of votes cast at the Jun 16, 2026 meeting (Cityfort calculation from the 8-K filed Jun 17, 2026).
Ling Hai
Chief Financial Officer · since 2026
CFO from Aug 3, 2026; previously President, Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Sachin Mehra
Chief Business Officer · since 2026
Moved from CFO, a role he held from April 2019, on Aug 3, 2026.
Linda Kirkpatrick
Chief Services Officer · since 2026
Succeeded Craig Vosburg, who became Vice Chair, on Aug 3, 2026.
Merit E. Janow
Independent Chair of the Board · since 2022
Chair since Jan 1, 2022. Ten of the 11 director nominees in 2026 were independent; the CEO was the only one who was not.
Chris Mullett
Corporate Controller and principal accounting officer · since 2026
Replaced Sandra Arkell on Aug 3, 2026.
What they said, and what happened
1 delivered · 2 too early to tell
Said on Jan 29, 2026
Mastercard said it expected a restructuring charge of about $200 million in Q1 FY2026.
DeliveredWhat happened
Q1 FY2026 general and administrative costs included a $202 million restructuring charge.
Said on Jan 29, 2026
Mastercard said it expected FY2026 GAAP net revenue growth at the high end of low double digits.
Too early to tellWhat happened
It raised this to the low teens on Jul 30, 2026 and kept it on Oct 29, 2026. Net revenue grew 15% in the first nine months of FY2026.
Said on Jan 29, 2026
Mastercard said it expected FY2026 GAAP operating expense growth at the high end of high single digits.
Too early to tellWhat happened
On Oct 29, 2026 it changed this to the low end of low double digits. GAAP operating expenses grew 11% in the first nine months of FY2026.
Sources (9)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting
- Form 8-K, Item 5.07: results of the June 16, 2026 annual meeting
- Form 8-K, Item 5.02: Ling Hai to become CFO; Sachin Mehra to Chief Business Officer (with press release, Ex. 99.1)
- Form 8-K, Item 5.02: new Corporate Controller and principal accounting officer
- Q4 2025 earnings presentation (first 2026 outlook, Appendix B)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Q2 2026 earnings presentation (2026 outlook, Appendix B)
- Q3 2026 earnings presentation (2026 outlook, Appendix B and C)
08What could go wrong
What could go wrong for Mastercard?
- Legal
Merchant fee lawsuits
Mastercard booked litigation provisions of $94 million in FY2021, $680 million in FY2024, $504 million in FY2025 and $156 million in the first nine months of FY2026. Block and Intuit claim more than $5 billion in single damages, and three U.K. collective actions claim over £1 billion, about £1.5 billion and about £0.4 billion.
Watch The November 2026 final approval hearing, and the litigation provision in each quarterly release.
- Regulation
Rules on card fees
The proposed U.S. settlement would cut the average U.S. credit interchange rate by 10 basis points, effectively capped for five years, and let stores accept some types of credit card and not others. Australia's competition regulator has a debit case, and the European Commission has asked about fees to acquirers.
Watch Court approval of the settlement and any new fee rules in the 10-K's legal notes.
- Concentration
Rebates and large customers
Rebates and incentives were 51.3% of network fees (assessments) in FY2025, up from 46.7% in FY2021 (Cityfort calculation from the FY2022 and FY2025 10-Ks). They grew 23%, 22% and 18% in the first three quarters of FY2026. The five largest customers gave about 21% of FY2025 net revenue.
Watch Rebate growth against net revenue growth in each quarterly release.
- Competition
Other ways to pay
Mastercard competes with Visa, American Express, JCB, China UnionPay and Discover, and with domestic networks, real-time account-to-account systems, digital wallets and fintechs.
Watch Gross dollar volume and switched transaction growth in each release.
- Demand
Cross-border slowdown and global exposure
Cross-border assessments were $12.0 billion in FY2025, and cross-border volume growth slowed from 18% in FY2024 to 11% in Q3 FY2026. About 29% of FY2025 net revenue was generated in the U.S. Mastercard suspended Russian operations in March 2022; Russia was about 4% of FY2021 net revenue.
Watch Cross-border volume growth in each earnings release.
- Debt
More debt in 2026
Total debt rose from $19.0 billion at Dec 31, 2025 to $23.9 billion at Sep 30, 2026, after $5.0 billion of notes. Mastercard paid $1.4 billion for BVNK in August 2026. Cash from operations in the first nine months fell $787 million from a year earlier.
Watch Net debt and cash from operations in the FY2026 10-K.
- Governance
Share classes and a selling holder
Class A carries all the votes; Class B has none. The charter caps any holder at 15% of Class A or of total voting power. The Mastercard Foundation, with 7.4% of Class A, is selling under a seven-year diversification plan begun in March 2024.
Watch The Foundation's Schedule 13GA filing by anyone who owns more than 5% of a company's shares and does not seek control. Learn more/A filings.
Sources (10)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Dec 31, 2023)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Form 8-K, Item 8.01: updated U.S. merchant rules-relief class settlement with Visa
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2022)
- Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q2 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q1 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Form 8-K, Item 8.01: $5.0 billion senior notes offering
- Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 7.4% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026)
09Both sides
What do supporters and critics point to?
What supporters point to
- Net revenue rose every year, from $18.9 billion in FY2021 to $32.8 billion in FY2025, and grew 15% in the first nine months of FY2026.
- Operating income per $100 of net revenue rose from $53.4 in FY2021 to $57.6 in FY2025.
- Value-added services revenue grew from $6.9 billion in FY2021 to $13.3 billion in FY2025.
- Diluted shares fell from 992 million in FY2021 to 906 million in FY2025, with $11.7 billion of repurchases in FY2025.
- Moody's rates Mastercard Aa3 and S&P A+, both stable, as stated in its Jun 4, 2026 term sheet.
What critics point to
- Rebates and incentives rose from 46.7% to 51.3% of network fees between FY2021 and FY2025.
- Litigation provisions were $504 million in FY2025, and Block and Intuit claim more than $5 billion in single damages.
- Total debt rose from $19.0 billion to $23.9 billion in the nine months to Sep 30, 2026, against equity of $6.7 billion.
- Cross-border volume growth slowed from 18% in FY2024 to 11% in Q3 FY2026.
- The five largest customers gave about 21% of FY2025 net revenue, and Mastercard does not name them.
10What to watch next
What should you watch next at Mastercard?
Next event
Q4 FY2026 results
Date not announced yet.
Final approval of the U.S. merchant settlement
The hearing is scheduled for November 2026. The settlement would cut the average U.S. credit interchange rate by 10 basis points.
Rebates and incentives
They were 51.3% of network fees in FY2025 and grew 18% in Q3 FY2026, when net revenue grew 14%.
The FY2026 10-K
It will show full-year debt after the $5.0 billion of June 2026 notes, the BVNK purchase and the year's litigation provisions.
11Key facts
Key facts about Mastercard
- What is Mastercard's business model?
- Mastercard runs a payment network that connects the banks of cardholders and stores, and it earned net revenue of $32.8 billion in FY2025. Mastercard does not issue cards, lend money or earn interest from cardholders.
- How does Mastercard make money?
- Mastercard makes money from fees on its network and from value-added services. In FY2025, Mastercard's payment network revenue was $19.5 billion after rebates and incentives to customers, and value-added services and solutions revenue was $13.3 billion.
- Is Mastercard profitable?
- Yes. Mastercard reported net income of $15.0 billion and operating income of $18.9 billion on net revenue of $32.8 billion in FY2025. In the first nine months of FY2026, Mastercard's net income was $12.9 billion, up 18%.
- What is Mastercard's revenue by segment?
- Mastercard reports one segment, Payment Solutions. It splits FY2025 net revenue of $32.8 billion into payment network revenue ($19.5 billion, 59.4%) and value-added services and solutions ($13.3 billion, 40.6%).
- Who are Mastercard's customers?
- Mastercard's customers are financial institutions that issue cards, acquirers that sign up stores, and other market participants; Mastercard does not bill consumers. Its five largest customers gave about 21% of FY2025 net revenue, and none gave more than 10%.
- Who owns Mastercard?
- Mastercard's Class A shares, which carry all the votes, trade on the NYSE. BlackRock reported 7.7% of Class A in a February 2024 filing; the Mastercard Foundation reported 7.4% and Vanguard Capital Management 6.82%, both at Mar 31, 2026.
- What is Mastercard's payment network revenue?
- Mastercard's payment network revenue was $19.5 billion in FY2025, up from $17.3 billion in FY2024. It equals $40.0 billion of fees on payment volume, cross-border payments and processing, minus $20.5 billion of rebates and incentives (Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K).
- How much does Mastercard earn from value-added services?
- Mastercard's value-added services and solutions revenue was $13.3 billion in FY2025, up from $10.8 billion in FY2024. In the first nine months of FY2026 it was $11.3 billion, up 20%.
- How big is Mastercard's network?
- Mastercard carried $10.6 trillion of gross dollar volume and 175.5 billion switched transactions in FY2025. It had 3.7 billion Mastercard and Maestro cards at Dec 31, 2025, and about 39,800 employees.
- Where does Mastercard earn its revenue?
- In FY2025, 42.8% of Mastercard's net revenue came from the Americas and 57.2% from Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. About 29% of Mastercard's FY2025 net revenue was generated in the U.S.
Sources (6)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting
- Schedule 13G: Vanguard Capital Management, 6.82% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026)
- Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 7.4% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026)
- Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
Terms on this page
- Capital expenditures (capex)
- Customer concentration
- Debt-to-equity
- Earnings per share (EPS)
- EBITDA
- Free cash flow
- Market cap
- Net debt
- Net margin
- Operating income
Each explains the term in plain English, with the same number from other companies on Cityfort.
Go deeper
More detail from the same filings. Open any section.
12What it sells
12What it sells
What does Mastercard sell?
Payment network
Fees on payment volume at home and across borders and on processing each transaction, minus rebates and incentives to customers. Revenue was $19.5 billion in FY2025.
Value-added services and solutions
Services sold beyond moving payments. Recent purchases include Recorded Future, a threat-intelligence company, and BVNK, which builds stablecoin infrastructure. Revenue was $13.3 billion in FY2025.
Card programs carrying its brand
In FY2025, consumer credit was 37% of gross dollar volume (1,083 million cards), debit and prepaid 50% (2,134 million) and commercial cards 13% (174 million).
Think of it like this
Like a toll road for card payments: Mastercard earns fees as payments travel its network, without lending the money being spent.
What it does
- Does: Carries card payments between the cardholder's bank and the store's bank
- Does: Charges fees on payment volume, cross-border payments and processing
- Does: Sells value-added services such as threat intelligence
- Does: Pays rebates and incentives to win and keep bank customers
What it does not do
- Does not: Does not issue cards or extend credit to cardholders
- Does not: Does not earn interest or fees charged to cardholders
- Does not: Does not set the discount rates stores pay their banks
13How the money flows
13How the money flows · FY2025
How does money flow through Mastercard?
Money in
- Net revenue (network fees minus rebates and incentives, plus value-added services)$32.8B
- Investment income and other income$491M
The company
Mastercard
$33.3B came in
Money out
- Personnel$7.3B
- Advertising, data processing, professional fees and other running costs$5.0B
- Depreciation and amortization$1.1B
- Litigation provision$504M
- Interest expense and losses on equity investments$810M
- Income tax$3.6B
- Net income$15.0B
- Mastercard's network fees (assessments) added up to $40.0 billion in FY2025 (Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K). Rebates and incentives to customers took $20.5 billion.
- That left payment network revenue of $19.5 billion. Value-added services added $13.3 billion, for net revenue of $32.8 billion.
- Investment and other income added $491 million, including about $135 million of government grants.
- Staff cost $7.3 billion. Advertising, data processing, fees and other running costs took $5.0 billion.
- After depreciation ($1.1 billion), litigation ($504 million), interest and investment losses ($810 million) and tax ($3.6 billion), $15.0 billion was net income.
14What it needs to run
14What it needs to run
What does Mastercard need to run?
The network and its technology
Mastercard owns its headquarters in Purchase, New York, and its main technology and operations center in O'Fallon, Missouri. It carried 175.5 billion switched transactions in FY2025.
People
About 39,800 employees at Dec 31, 2025, about 70% outside the U.S., plus about 6,000 contingent workers. Personnel cost $7.3 billion in FY2025.
Bank customers and their deals
Issuers and acquirers bring cards and stores onto the network. Mastercard paid them $20.5 billion of rebates and incentives in FY2025.
Brand
Advertising and marketing cost $929 million in FY2025.
15Where it sells
15Where it sells · FY2025 (Americas = U.S., Canada and Latin America)
Where does Mastercard sell?
- Americas43%
- Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa57%
16Competitors and what protects it
16Competitors and what protects it
Who does Mastercard compete with?
Visa
NYSE: V
Named in Mastercard's 10-K as a competing global network. Visa is also a co-defendant in the U.S. merchant interchange lawsuits and a party to the November 2025 settlement.
American Express
Named in Mastercard's 10-K as a competing general purpose payment network.
JCB
Named in Mastercard's 10-K as a competing general purpose payment network.
China UnionPay
Named in Mastercard's 10-K as a competing general purpose payment network.
Discover
Named in Mastercard's 10-K as a competing general purpose payment network.
What protects the business
Each strength is scored 1 (weak) to 5 (strong) for the business, with the reason. It is not a rating of the share.
- Size of the network5 of 5
3.7 billion Mastercard and Maestro cards at Dec 31, 2025, and $10.6 trillion of gross dollar volume in FY2025.
- Transaction processing4 of 5
Switched transactions rose from 125.7 billion in FY2022 to 175.5 billion in FY2025.
- Cross-border payments4 of 5
Cross-border assessments were $12.0 billion in FY2025, up from $4.6 billion in FY2021, before rebates and incentives.
- Value-added services3 of 5
Revenue grew from $6.9 billion in FY2021 to $13.3 billion in FY2025, and 20% in the first nine months of FY2026.
Weak spot
Pressure on card fees
Mastercard has booked a litigation provision every year since FY2021. The proposed U.S. settlement of November 2025 would cut the average U.S. credit interchange rate by 10 basis points, effectively capped for five years, and let stores accept some types of credit card and not others.
Sources (6)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Form 8-K, Item 8.01: updated U.S. merchant rules-relief class settlement with Visa
- Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Dec 31, 2023)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2022)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
17Where growth could come from
17Where growth could come from
Where could Mastercard's growth come from?
Mastercard said in its Q3 2026 earnings presentation (Oct 29, 2026) that it expects FY2026 GAAP net revenue growth in the low teens and GAAP operating expense growth at the low end of low double digits. On its non-GAAPThe company's own "adjusted" numbers, not the official (GAAP) ones. Always read them next to the official figure. Learn more currency-neutral basis excluding acquisitions, it expects net revenue growth at the high end of low double digits and operating expense growth in the low double digits.
Value-added services
Working+20% in 9M FY2026
Revenue was $11.3 billion in the nine months to Sep 30, 2026, up from $9.4 billion a year earlier: $3,450 million in Q1, $3,826 million in Q2 and $4,058 million in Q3.
Status: Working, on track against what the company said.
Cross-border payments
Working+11% in Q3 FY2026
Cross-border volume grew 11% in local currency in Q3 FY2026, against 15% in Q3 FY2025 and 18% in FY2024.
Status: Working, on track against what the company said.
More cards and transactions
Working+9% in Q3 FY2026
Switched transactions grew 9% in Q3 FY2026, and cards issued reached 3.8 billion at Sep 30, 2026.
Status: Working, on track against what the company said.
Stablecoin infrastructure
New$1.4B BVNK, Aug 2026
Mastercard bought BVNK Holdings, a stablecoin infrastructure company, on Aug 3, 2026 for $1.4 billion in cash plus up to $300 million contingent.
Status: New, recently announced.
Status compares progress with what the company itself said it would do: Working = on track against what the company said; Mixed = partly on track; Behind = behind the company's own plan; New = recently announced; Early = too early to judge.
Sources (7)
- Q3 2026 earnings presentation (2026 outlook, Appendix B and C)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Form 10-Q, Q2 2026 (quarter ended Jun 30, 2026)
- Form 10-Q, Q1 2026 (quarter ended Mar 31, 2026)
- Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q3 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
18The company's own measures (non-GAAP)
18The company's own measures · FY2025 and Q3 FY2026
What do Mastercard's own measures show?
Official (GAAP): Net income, FY2025
$15.0B
Company's own measure: Adjusted net income, FY2025
$15.4B
Mastercard leaves out gains and losses on equity investments and its "Special Items": litigation provisions ($504 million before tax in FY2025) and, in FY2024, a $190 million restructuring charge.
Official (GAAP): Diluted EPS, FY2025
$16.52
Company's own measure: Adjusted diluted EPS, FY2025
$17.01
The same exclusions as adjusted net income.
Official (GAAP): Operating margin, FY2025
57.6%
Company's own measure: Adjusted operating margin, FY2025
59.2%
Operating income per $100 of net revenue, leaving out litigation provisions.
Official (GAAP): Diluted EPS, Q3 FY2026
$5.28
Company's own measure: Adjusted diluted EPS, Q3 FY2026
$5.31
Leaves out equity-investment gains and losses, litigation provisions and restructuring charges.
Official (GAAP): Reported net revenue growth, 9M FY2026
15.0%
Company's own measure: Net revenue growth, currency-neutral, 9M FY2026
13%
Mastercard removes the effect of exchange-rate changes.
Official (GAAP)
No official figure measures this; it is the company's own operating measure.
Company's own measure: Gross dollar volume, FY2025
10.6 trillion dollars
The value of payments on Mastercard-branded cards. Mastercard charges many network fees based on this volume; net revenue was $32.8 billion.
Official (GAAP)
No official figure measures this; it is the company's own operating measure.
Company's own measure: Switched transactions, FY2025
175.5 billion
Transactions that ran over Mastercard's network, up 10% in FY2025.
These are the company's own measures, defined by the company. They are not comparable across companies, and they are not added together. Each sits beside the nearest official (GAAP) figure.
Learn: Non-GAAP measures: what a company's "adjusted" numbers leave out
19Financial strength and debt
19Financial strength · Sep 30, 2026
How much debt does Mastercard have?
- Total debt$23.9B
- Cash and investments$10.5B
- Net debt (debt minus cash)$13.5B
- Net worth (shareholders' money)$6.7B
- Debt to equity
- 3.55×
- $ of debt for every $1 of shareholders' money
- Net debt is a Cityfort calculation from the Q3 FY2026 10-Q: total debt of $23.9 billion minus cash and cash equivalents ($10.1 billion) and investments ($317 million). Restricted cash is not counted. The Dec 31, 2025 figure is a Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K on the same basis.
- Total debt was $19.0 billion at Dec 31, 2025; Mastercard sold $5.0 billion of notes in June 2026. $1.7 billion is due within 12 months of Sep 30, 2026.
- Equity is small because repurchased shares are held as treasury stock: $83.2 billion at Dec 31, 2025, against retained earnings of $85.0 billion. That is why debt is 3.55 times equity.
- At Dec 31, 2025 Mastercard had an unused $8 billion revolving credit facility, amended Nov 7, 2025, that expires Nov 7, 2030, and nothing drawn on its $8 billion commercial paper program.
- Operating lease liabilities ($833 million at Dec 31, 2025) are outside total debt.
20Who owns it
20Who owns it · ownership as of Apr 21, 2026
Who owns Mastercard?
- Officers and directors (as a group), shares
- 0.1%
Shares vs votes by class
Mastercard has more than one class of shares, and the classes carry different votes. The share of votes a class holds can differ a lot from its share of the shares.
- Class A common stock: share of all votes100.0%
- Class B common stock: share of all votes0.0%
Each class's part of all votes = its shares outstanding × votes per share ÷ the total for all classes.
Share classes
Holders of 5% or more
From the company's proxy statement (DEF 14A), later Schedule 13G filings and the share counts on its latest annual or quarterly report. Each holder row shows the date of its own filing.
Learn: Dual-class shares: when votes and ownership don't match · How to read a proxy statement (DEF 14A): Nvidia's 2026 proxy · Form 4 insider filings: who files, the codes and the footnotes
Sources (7)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 7.4% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026)
- Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 8.3% of Class A (as of Jun 30, 2025)
- Schedule 13G: Vanguard Capital Management, 6.82% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026)
- Schedule 13G/A: The Vanguard Group reports 0 shares after an internal realignment
21What it does with profit
21What it does with profit
What does Mastercard do with its profit?
Dividend per share
$3.15FY2025
Dividend paid for each share, by financial year.
$ per share
See the numbers
Buyback · Sep 30, 2026
9M FY2026: 22.9 million Class A shares at an average of $520.64. Authorization of $5,568 million was left at Sep 30, 2026.
$11.9B
Buyback · Dec 31, 2025
FY2025: 21.1 million Class A shares at an average of $555.78.
$11.7B
Buyback · Dec 31, 2024
FY2024: 23.0 million Class A shares at an average of $475.35.
$11.0B
Money raised · Jun 8, 2026
Sold $5.0 billion of senior notes due 2028 to 2036; net proceeds $4.978 billion.
$5.0B
Sources (6)
22Governance signals
22Governance signals
What do Mastercard's governance filings show?
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, since 1989
- Auditor changes
- None in the period covered
- Audit qualifications
- None reported
- Related-party dealings
- The 8-K on the CFO change discloses that Ling Hai's daughter is a Mastercard employee, paid $127,262 in 2025.
- Credit rating
- Moody's and S&P (as stated in Mastercard's Jun 4, 2026 pricing term sheet) Aa3 (Moody's) / A+ (S&P) (Stable (both)), Jun 4, 2026
A credit rating describes the company's ability to repay debt. It is not a rating of the share.
Flags to know about
regulatory · Oct 29, 2026
U.S. merchant interchange litigation
Merchants have sued Mastercard and Visa over interchange fees since 2005. A revised settlement with the rules-relief class, announced Nov 10, 2025, got preliminary approval in June 2026; the final approval hearing is scheduled for November 2026. Mastercard has settled with every opt-out merchant except Block and Intuit, which claim more than $5 billion in total single damages. Its accrual for these U.S. cases was $156 million at Sep 30, 2026.
regulatory · Oct 29, 2026
New U.S. merchant class actions
In April 2026, merchants in the earlier damages class filed a proposed class action over credit interchange since January 2019, challenging the 2018 release. In September 2026 the court ruled against those plaintiffs' motion, barring their damages claims; they have appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Also in September 2026, merchants outside that class filed another proposed class action over the same period.
regulatory · Oct 29, 2026
U.K. and European claims
Claimants seek over £1 billion (about $1.3 billion) in a U.K. collective action over commercial cards, and about £1.5 billion and £0.4 billion in two more served in October 2026. Other unresolved merchant claims exceed £0.5 billion; consumer claims in Portugal and the Netherlands seek about €0.4 billion and €0.3 billion. These are the claimants' figures.
regulatory · Oct 29, 2026
Australia and the European Commission
The liability hearing in the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's debit case ended in June 2026. The European Commission sent Mastercard an information request in 2024 about network fees charged to acquirers.
other · Oct 29, 2026
ATM fee cases
A settlement with a class of non-bank ATM users, with a $79 million accrual, was preliminarily approved in August 2026. A separate class of ATM operators was dismissed in September 2026.
other · Aug 3, 2026
New finance leadership
Ling Hai became CFO and Chris Mullett became principal accounting officer on Aug 3, 2026. Q3 FY2026 was the first quarter reported under them.
disclosure
Largest customers not named
Mastercard offers a live audio webcast of its earnings call with slides, and it does not name its five largest customers, which gave about 21% of FY2025 net revenue.
Sources (7)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Form 8-K, Item 5.02: Ling Hai to become CFO; Sachin Mehra to Chief Business Officer (with press release, Ex. 99.1)
- Free writing prospectus: pricing term sheet for the June 2026 notes (states issuer ratings Aa3 / A+)
- Form 8-K, Item 8.01: updated U.S. merchant rules-relief class settlement with Visa
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Form 8-K, Item 5.02: new Corporate Controller and principal accounting officer
- Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
23What the market paid
23What the market paid · price as of Nov 5, 2026
What did the market pay for Mastercard on Nov 5, 2026?
Price as of Nov 5, 2026 (shown for education; prices change daily).
Price as of Nov 5, 2026: Mastercard's Class A shares closed at $655.92, from Nasdaq's historical price table for MA; the shares are listed on the NYSE. Market value of about $571.4 billion (Cityfort calculation from the Nov 5, 2026 closing price and the Q3 FY2026 10-Q) = $655.92 × 871.2 million Class A and Class B shares on Oct 26, 2026. Class B has no public market; Class A alone gives about $567.1 billion. P/E is price ÷ earnings per share: 34.3 on diluted EPS of $19.12 for the four quarters to Sep 30, 2026 (Cityfort calculation from the Q4 FY2025 to Q3 FY2026 earnings releases). Dividend yield is 0.53%: $0.87 × 4 = $3.48 a year ÷ the price.
- Share price
- $655.92
- Market value (market cap)
- $571.4B
- P/E
- 34.3×
More price-based ratios · as of Nov 5, 2026
Each ratio divides a number from the company's filings by the market value or share price on Nov 5, 2026. Prices change daily, so these ratios do too.
Price to sales (P/S)
15.7×
$571.4B market value ÷ $36.3B revenue (four quarters to Sep 30, 2026) = 15.7×
Cityfort calculation from the Nov 5, 2026 closing price and the Q4 FY2025 to Q3 FY2026 earnings releases. Source: MA historical prices, Oct 6 to Nov 5, 2026 (Nasdaq.com historical table; MA is listed on the NYSE); Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026); Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) and 3 more
How price ratios workFree cash flow yield
3.0%
$17.2B free cash flow (FY2025) ÷ $571.4B market value = 3.0%
Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K and the Nov 5, 2026 closing price. Source: MA historical prices, Oct 6 to Nov 5, 2026 (Nasdaq.com historical table; MA is listed on the NYSE); Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026); Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) and 4 more
What free cash flow means
Shares used for the market value: 871.18 million ($655.92 × 871.18 million shares ≈ $571.4B). Source: Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026); Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting; Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
Source: MA historical prices, Oct 6 to Nov 5, 2026 (Nasdaq.com historical table; MA is listed on the NYSE); Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026); Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) and 3 more
Sources (8)
- MA historical prices, Oct 6 to Nov 5, 2026 (Nasdaq.com historical table; MA is listed on the NYSE)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q1 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q2 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting
24How it got here
24How it got here
How did Mastercard get here?
1966
Milestone
Network formed
Mastercard International Incorporated, today's operating company, was formed in November 1966.
2006
Business-model change
Public listing
Mastercard's Class A shares listed in May 2006; non-voting Class B shares went to customers at the IPO.
2021
Business-model change
New CEO and Nets purchase
Michael Miebach became CEO in January 2021. In March, Mastercard bought most of Nets' Denmark corporate services business for €3.0 billion.
2022
Crisis
Russia exit
Mastercard suspended its business in Russia in March 2022; Russia was about 4% of FY2021 net revenue.
2024
Business-model change
Recorded Future
Mastercard bought Recorded Future, a threat-intelligence company, for $2.7 billion in cash in December 2024.
2025
Milestone
Revised U.S. settlement
On Nov 10, 2025 Mastercard and Visa announced a revised settlement with U.S. merchants over card acceptance rules and interchange.
2026
Business-model change
BVNK purchase
Mastercard bought BVNK, a stablecoin infrastructure company, for $1.4 billion in cash on Aug 3, 2026.
2026
Milestone
New CFO
Ling Hai became CFO on Aug 3, 2026, and Sachin Mehra became Chief Business Officer.
Sources (7)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025)
- Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026)
- Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2022)
- Form 10-K, fiscal year 2024 (ended Dec 31, 2024)
- Form 8-K, Item 8.01: updated U.S. merchant rules-relief class settlement with Visa
- Form 8-K, Item 5.02: Ling Hai to become CFO; Sachin Mehra to Chief Business Officer (with press release, Ex. 99.1)
25Sources and changes
Where every number on this page comes from
Sources (31 documents)
- S1Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Feb 11, 2026
- S2Form 10-K, fiscal year 2024 (ended Dec 31, 2024) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Feb 12, 2025
- S3Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Dec 31, 2023) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Feb 13, 2024
- S4Form 10-K, fiscal year 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2022) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Feb 14, 2023
- S5Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Oct 29, 2026
- S6Form 10-Q, Q2 2026 (quarter ended Jun 30, 2026) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jul 30, 2026
- S7Form 10-Q, Q1 2026 (quarter ended Mar 31, 2026) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Apr 30, 2026
- S8Earnings release, Q3 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Oct 29, 2026
- S9Earnings release, Q2 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jul 30, 2026
- S10Earnings release, Q1 2026 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Apr 30, 2026
- S11Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jan 29, 2026
- S12Earnings release, Q3 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Oct 30, 2025
- S13Earnings release, Q2 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jul 31, 2025
- S14Earnings release, Q1 2025 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · May 1, 2025
- S15Earnings release, Q4 and full year 2024 (Form 8-K, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jan 30, 2025
- S16Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Apr 27, 2026
- S17Form 8-K, Item 8.01: updated U.S. merchant rules-relief class settlement with Visa · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Nov 10, 2025
- S18Form 8-K, Item 1.01: $8 billion revolving credit facility extended to Nov 2030 · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Nov 12, 2025
- S19Form 8-K, Item 5.02: Ling Hai to become CFO; Sachin Mehra to Chief Business Officer (with press release, Ex. 99.1) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jun 2, 2026
- S20Form 8-K, Item 5.02: new Corporate Controller and principal accounting officer · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · May 7, 2026
- S21Form 8-K, Item 8.01: $5.0 billion senior notes offering · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jun 8, 2026
- S22Form 8-K, Item 5.07: results of the June 16, 2026 annual meeting · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jun 17, 2026
- S23Free writing prospectus: pricing term sheet for the June 2026 notes (states issuer ratings Aa3 / A+) · Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jun 4, 2026
- S24Schedule 13G: Vanguard Capital Management, 6.82% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026) · Vanguard Capital Management (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Apr 30, 2026
- S25Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 7.4% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026) · Mastercard Foundation Asset Management Corp. (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Apr 16, 2026
- S26Schedule 13G/A: The Vanguard Group reports 0 shares after an internal realignment · The Vanguard Group (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Mar 27, 2026
- S27Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 8.3% of Class A (as of Jun 30, 2025) · Mastercard Foundation Asset Management Corp. (SEC EDGAR) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Aug 1, 2025
- S28Q3 2026 earnings presentation (2026 outlook, Appendix B and C) · Mastercard Incorporated (investor.mastercard.com) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Oct 29, 2026
- S29Q2 2026 earnings presentation (2026 outlook, Appendix B) · Mastercard Incorporated (investor.mastercard.com) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jul 30, 2026
- S30Q4 2025 earnings presentation (first 2026 outlook, Appendix B) · Mastercard Incorporated (investor.mastercard.com) · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Jan 29, 2026
- S31MA historical prices, Oct 6 to Nov 5, 2026 (Nasdaq.com historical table; MA is listed on the NYSE) · Nasdaq, Inc. · Tier 1: company or exchange filing · Nov 6, 2026
Changes to this page (v1 · Nov 6, 2026)
- v1 · Nov 6, 2026First version, through Q3 FY2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026). (first version)
Numbers come only from tier 1 and tier 2 sources. Read how we research.
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