Mastercard users globally have reported problems with making purchases and online payments on Sunday.
Downdetector, which tracks service interruptions by collating status reports from several sources including users, showed a major increase in reports, totalling more than 500, starting on the morning of March 9.
Users of the global electronic payment card from Ukraine to Japan also took to social media platform X to report problems with card payments.
Mastercard users complained about the loss of services on social media platform X. One user said: “Mastercard is down so almost faced a night on the street here back in Taipei. Had just enough cash to pay for tonight … but we have five bucks between us and can’t use ATM or anything. What a nightmare.”
Another person wrote: “Unable to use either Mastercard stored in my phone – at a cashless event.”
One Mastercard user also said: “Got stuck at the store trying to pay for my daughter’s birthday gift.”
The cause of the disruption is not yet known.
"There was a period of time earlier today during which some Mastercard transactions were declined. The situation has been resolved and all systems are working as normal," Mastercard told The National.
The National has reached out to Mastercard to ask about the reasons for and expected duration of the outage, and which areas are worst affected.
The global payment company reported robust fourth-quarter results last year as a resilient global economy encouraged consumers to ramp up spending during the holiday season. The company's net revenue rose 16 per cent year on year to $7.49 billion. Net income rose 22 per cent to $3.3 billion.