Mastercard eyes ad dollars with new data-driven media network

Mastercard is expanding into personalised advertising with the launch of Mastercard Commerce Media, a digital media network aimed at streamlining how brands reach consumers. The network leverages Mastercard’s position as a payments provider, combining permissioned data, technology infrastructure, and connections to advertisers, publishers and consumers.

It taps into Mastercard’s base of 25,000 advertisers and more than 500 million enrolled consumers, drawing insights from over 160 billion transactions processed in 2024. Mastercard Commerce Media claims it can deliver measurable return on ad spend (ROAS) for advertisers across categories including retail, travel, entertainment, dining and everyday spend.

Operations span both Mastercard-owned channels and partner outlets, including banks and publishers worldwide. Strategic partnerships underpin the ecosystem, with collaborations with Citi to extend reach, WPP to connect with traditional media, and Microsoft’s Copilot Studio to support real-time, agent-driven commerce experiences.

Don't miss: Mastercard hands US$180m global media remit to WPP Media

Retail media networks have grown rapidly in recent years, with eMarketer projecting spending to approach US$100 billion by 2028. Advertisers often face challenges such as limited visibility into consumer preferences and inconsistent measurement across channels. Mastercard Commerce Media addresses these through end-to-end attribution, card-linking technology and merchant reach, allowing measurement of conversion and incrementality for both in-store and online purchases.

The platform allows advertisers to deliver offers such as cashback, discounts or other incentives to audiences defined by their business goals. Consumers activate these offers via enrolled cards, enabling purchases to be directly attributed to the content they received. Reward programs can also be structured in a brand’s own cash currency.

Complementary Mastercard solutions, including Dynamic Yield for consumer personalisation and Mastercard Marketing Services for media optimisation, support the network. The company plans to expand distribution channels to points of sale, digital wallets and additional markets, with further integration of Mastercard solutions expected through 2026.

“We understand how to connect advertisers to consumers and consumers to the products, services and experiences they value,” said Craig Vosburg, chief services officer at Mastercard. “Mastercard Commerce Media is a natural extension of the trusted connections we’re known for and the work we already do across our unique suite of services.”

Mastercard’s move comes as the wider advertising industry explores new ways to deliver more personalised experiences. In Singapore, for example, StarHub recently unveiled Dynamic Ad Pods, a solution that replaces ads in real time on live broadcast TV, allowing households to see tailored content while watching the same programme. Innovations such as these underline the growing demand for precise targeting and relevant, engaging advertising across channels.

Related articles: 
Samsung Ads and Publica extend multi-year global partnership to power CTV ad serving     
Global digital ad spend hits US$690 billion, poised to dominate in 2030   
Reddit's new AI tools turn real talk into ad power