According to RBR’s Global Payment Cards Data and Forecasts to 2021 study, the number of Mastercard cards grew by 6% in the Americas in 2015, compared with a rise of 4% for Visa.
Nevertheless, Visa remains the largest card scheme in the region, with a share of 43% of the 2.9 billion cards in circulation, compared with 26% for Mastercard. Private label cards collectively account for 23% – a proportion which is declining as such cards are frequently converted to international schemes.