Mastercard partners with CRED to secure rent and tuition payments

By Leandra Monteiro

Mastercard and CRED, a leading Indian FinTech unicorn, launched a campaign that will enable Mastercard credit cardholders to make simple, secure tuition and rent payments for housing expenses using the CRED app. Cardholders will enjoy the convenience of making high value transactions such as rent payments, or paying maintenance and school fees for any type of education, from primary school to university, from any mobile device while benefiting from additional liquidity and enjoying exclusive cashback and credit card rewards.

Education spends in India currently represent less than 5% of all online or e-commerce spends as consumers tend to rely on traditional modes of payment such as cheques, bank drafts or cash for paying these fees. Rent payments have witnessed a similar trend. However, against the backdrop of the pandemic, there has been an accelerated shift towards digital payments amongst Indian consumers.

Addressing this need, the Mastercard-CRED partnership offers a seamless credit card-based payment solution that gives millions of consumers greater choice in how they pay. To make payments, consumers only need to enter the bank account number and Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) of the receiving educational institution or the rent recipient on the CRED app.

“By rewarding transactions and providing a seamless experience, we can enable more CRED members to use their cards for large value recurring transactions. Partnerships with ecosystem stakeholders like Mastercard encourage members to pay their monthly rent and education fee payments on their credit cards, enabling them to gain more credit card points and unlock greater liquidity. At CRED we are creating a system that strives to reward high trust and creditworthy individuals of India, inspiring others to be like them,” said Akshay Aedula, CRED.

“Mastercard technology offers simplicity and safety to cardholders with each and every transaction. This partnership with CRED opens convenient, new payment possibilities on credit card spends for millions of mobile-first users and facilitates greater choice for Mastercard cardholders. Enabling high value, recurring transactions such as tuition and rent to be paid on credit cards will make strides in accelerating India’s transition to a less cash economy. Through Mastercard’s longstanding relationship with CRED, cardholders will enjoy more secure, seamless checkout experiences,” said Aditya Murthy, Vice President, Digital Partnerships, South Asia, Mastercard.