Cross-border transactions recorded a significant surge on Mastercard and Visa networks during the first quarter of 2025.
**Mastercard and Visa Report Strong Cross-Border Growth in Q1 2025**
In the first quarter of 2025, both Mastercard and Visa demonstrated impressive growth in cross-border transactions, with each company capitalising on emerging market dynamics and digital payment platforms to drive scalable solutions.
Mastercard reported a 15% year-over-year rise in cross-border volume on a local currency basis. The company saw steady growth in key emerging markets, with the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions increasing by around 2.8% in Q1 of 2025, while Latin America posted more significant gains with GDV growth of 10.2% in 2024 and continuing into 2025. Mastercard’s adjusted net revenue surged 14%, underpinned by higher-value services including cross-border settlements.
Visa's performance was equally impressive, posting a 14% growth in cross-border revenue, surpassing domestic transaction growth. Cross-border transaction volumes rose 13% year-over-year on a constant-dollar basis. Visa's expansion was supported by rebounding travel and trade alongside the growth of digital ecosystems, particularly in emerging markets like Latin America and Asia Pacific.
Mastercard's strategic focus has been on expanding fintech partnerships across emerging markets, promoting digital wallets, mobile payments, and financial inclusion. While specific Q1 2025 metrics for Mastercard Move were not detailed, Mastercard's broad push into digital finance platforms and service innovations such as Buy Now Pay Later highlights its commitment to platform-based growth and cross-border payment solutions.
Visa Direct, Visa’s real-time push payment platform, is a key enabler of its digital ecosystem growth, especially in cross-border commerce and decentralized payment systems. Although exact Q1 2025 transaction volumes or revenues from Visa Direct were not specified, Visa’s overall cross-border revenue and transaction volume growth strongly suggest continued momentum from Visa Direct innovations supporting instant digital payments globally.
In summary, Mastercard leads slightly in cross-border volume growth in Q1 2025, while Visa matches closely in revenue growth. Both companies are capitalising on emerging market dynamics and digital payment platforms like Mastercard Move and Visa Direct to drive scalable cross-border payment solutions.
It is important to note that while this article provides an analysis of the Q1 2025 results, it does not offer any new information about potential future challenges in the global market or the content of any industry-leading newsletter.
[1] Mastercard Q1 2025 Earnings Release, 2025. [2] Visa Q1 2025 Earnings Release, 2025. [3] Mastercard and Visa Q1 2025 Analysis, Industry Analyst, 2025.
The cross-border growth in Q1 2025 led by Mastercard and Visa was primarily driven by their focus on emerging markets and digital payment platforms, resulting in a notable increase in both volume and revenue for both companies. The financial services industry, including business sectors like banking and finance, are thereby significantly benefiting from the growing preference for digital payments and the expansion of fintech partnerships.
