Mastercard and LankaPay unveil three-fold plan to accelerate Sri Lanka’s digital economy

From left: Mastercard Country Manager – Sri Lanka and Maldives Sandun Hapugoda, Chief Operating Officer – South Asia Vikas Varma, Division President – South Asia Gautam Aggarwal, Director Account Management Mahesha Amarasuriya, Chairman L.H.A. Lakshman Silva, with LankaPay Chief Executive Officer Channa de Silva, and Deputy Chief Executive Officer Dinuka Perera 

• The two entities will collaborate to launch co-branded debit cards, and enable AI-powered payment security and low-cost QR payments to accelerate financial inclusion

Reaffirming their commitment to bolstering Sri Lanka’s digital economy, Mastercard and LankaPay, the national payment network of Sri Lanka, have announced a strategic collaboration to enhance cards issuance, and digital payments acceptance and security.

The announcement was made during an event featuring senior executives from the two entities, along with key representatives of leading banks and fintechs in the country. This collaboration will enable three key solutions—a co-branded debit card to accelerate digital adoption and financial inclusion, Mastercard Pay Local solution to enable low-cost QR payments for inbound tourists and domestic merchants, and Mastercard’s Brighterion AI solutions for advanced transaction security.

The Mastercard-LankaPay co-branded debit card will deliver enhanced value to cardholders through Priceless Specials, a unified digital platform enabling exclusive offers. Similarly, Mastercard Travel and Lifestyle Services will provide cardholders with global concierge services and travel deals. Notably, issuing banks in Sri Lanka will be able to seamlessly integrate the new card into their existing business models, aligning with the Government’s push for digital adoption while enhancing consumer engagement.

Further, Mastercard’s Pay Local solution will be enabled for inbound tourists to link their credit and debit cards with the LankaPay app to make instant payments at over 400,000 LankaQR merchants in their home currency. 

This will promote digital payments adoption among businesses, especially SMEs, thereby formalising tourism revenue.

At the same time, Mastercard’s Brighterion AI solutions will provide real-time intelligence across diverse data sources to optimise fraud detection and customer experience across LankaPay network. By analysing customer and network-level insights, Brighterion’s advanced algorithms will generate real-time fraud risk scores, enabling organisations to mitigate risks and maintain seamless user experience. The solution adapts to any data type, volume, or complexity, offering scalable protection for financial ecosystems.

Brighterion AI solutions will ensure that ATM and account-to-account transfers in Sri Lanka will now be secured by an advanced, AI-driven security layer, a first-of-its-kind upgrade, providing real-time fraud detection and enhanced protection.

Highlighting the significance of the collaboration, Mastercard Country Manager, Sri Lanka and Maldives Sandun Hapugoda said, “This three-fold approach will further strengthen the core pillars of Sri Lanka’s digitisation agenda — accessibility, security, and innovation. From ensuring seamless card issuance to securing payments and enabling global tourists to transact with great ease, this collaboration between Mastercard and LankaPay will unlock exciting opportunities for all stakeholders.”

Applauding the partnership, LankaPay CEO Channa de Silva said, “This is a significant milestone in LankaPay’s global journey. We have been at the forefront of moving the financial inclusiveness needle forward in the country and this collaboration with Mastercard is a step in the same direction. The key initiatives unveiled as part of this association will ensure that the financial sector would benefit via enhanced value and improved security. At the same time, the domestic tourism industry would also benefit from seamless payments for travellers, thereby facilitating the much-needed foreign exchange into the country.”