Mastercard and Corpay have entered into a strategic partnership that includes a $300 million investment by Mastercard for a minority stake in Corpay’s cross-border payments division. This investment, which gives Mastercard an estimated 3% ownership, values the division at approximately $10.7 billion—the first time an external party has formally valued the unit.

The Mastercard-Corpay partnership builds on the companies’ prior collaboration and significantly expands their partnership. As part of the agreement, Corpay will become the exclusive provider of currency risk management and integrated high-value cross-border payment services for Mastercard’s financial institution clients. In return, Mastercard will exclusively offer virtual card solutions to Corpay’s customer base.

Additionally, the partnership will extend the reach of Mastercard’s Move payments platform, enabling it to serve more small and medium-sized businesses, including those already working with Corpay, in previously untapped markets.

Key Takeaways

• Mastercard invested $300 million in Corpay’s cross-border unit, valuing the division at $10.7 billion. This marks the first external valuation of the business and signals Mastercard’s intent to expand into high-value, account-to-account corporate payments.
• Corpay will become the exclusive provider of large-ticket cross-border payments and currency risk tools for Mastercard’s banking clients. In return, Mastercard will be the exclusive virtual card provider for Corpay’s corporate customers.
• The deal enables Mastercard Move to serve Corpay’s small and mid-sized business clients in new global markets, supporting diverse payment types and delivery channels through a network of over 10 billion endpoints.
• The collaboration combines Corpay’s FX and large transaction expertise with Mastercard’s global network and card infrastructure, allowing both firms to address the full range of cross-border B2B payment needs more effectively.

Mastercard-Corpay Partnership: $300M Investment to Expand Cross-Border B2B Payment Capabilities

On April 29, 2025, Mastercard and Corpay unveiled an expansion of their long-standing collaboration, marking a strategic partnership aimed at revolutionizing corporate cross-border payments.

Under the terms of the agreement, Mastercard has invested $300 million for an approximately 3% equity stake in Corpay’s cross-border business, valuing that unit at US$ 10.7 billion and implying a 20× forward EBITDA multiple.

As part of the deal, Corpay will serve as the exclusive provider of industry-leading currency risk management and integrated large-ticket cross-border payments solutions to Mastercard’s financial institution customers, enabling banks to embed sophisticated hedging strategies, multi-currency collections accounts, and vertically specialized workflows into their digital platforms. In turn, Corpay will exclusively offer Mastercard’s virtual card programs to its corporate clients, extending virtual cards’ benefits (such as fraud mitigation, automation, and detailed spend data) into Corpay’s global payment network.

In addition to high-value flows, Mastercard Move’s cross-border services—introduced in October to support near-real-time, predictable, and transparent corporate disbursements—will be offered to Corpay’s small and mid-sized business clients across a range of new markets. Mastercard Move leverages a network that reaches over 10 billion endpoints in more than 200 countries and territories, supporting delivery channels such as bank accounts, mobile wallets, cards, and cash-pick-up locations, along with multiple payment types to meet diverse customer requirements.

The partnership promises to simplify payment workflows, enhance transparency, and offer end-to-end choices for banks and businesses of all sizes, seamlessly bridging card-based and non-carded channels.

Mastercard and Corpay have maintained a collaborative relationship for over a decade, initially focusing on virtual card issuance and commercial card programs in the United States. These early efforts generated more than $50 billion in annual purchase volume for Mastercard-branded fleet and prepaid commercial cards, underscoring the scale and success of their joint initiatives.

The new agreement, announced from Mastercard’s headquarters in Purchase, New York, and Corpay’s headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, elevates the collaboration to encompass end-to-end cross-border payment solutions—marrying Corpay’s award-winning foreign exchange expertise with Mastercard’s expansive global network and digital payment infrastructure.

In an increasingly competitive B2B payments industry, both firms identified a strategic opportunity to leverage complementary strengths. Corpay’s cross-border business specializes in high-value, account-to-account transfers and sophisticated currency risk management tools that help banks, institutional investors, and corporates hedge foreign exchange exposure and streamline large-ticket disbursements at scale.

Meanwhile, Mastercard’s core expertise lies in secure, high-volume card networks and digital innovation for small-ticket remittances and corporate payables. By aligning these capabilities, the combined offering addresses the full spectrum of cross-border needs—from high-value corporate transactions to remittances and vendor payouts—within a unified, transparent framework that emphasizes speed and risk mitigation.

At the core of this partnership is a shared focus on creating synergy. Speaking at a JPMorgan investor conference, Chief Financial Officer Sachin Mehra noted that the collaboration brings significant mutual benefits. Mastercard can enhance its card-based network through Corpay’s platform technology and expertise in FX management, while Corpay gains access to Mastercard’s global distribution network and digital treasury solutions.

Chief Commercial Payments Officer Raj Seshadri emphasized that the partnership also extends Mastercard’s capabilities in the expanding cross-border B2B payments market, enabling financial institution partners to better meet the non-card payment needs of their commercial clients with greater simplicity and efficiency.

Ron Clarke, Chairman and CEO of Corpay, expressed strong enthusiasm about the investment and new partnership with Mastercard. He stated that they are thrilled about the collaboration and anticipate that Mastercard’s backing of their cross-border solutions will significantly accelerate the growth of their financial institution revenue.

Why Mastercard Invested in Corpay

Mastercard’s recent investment in Corpay’s cross-border payments unit is about more than money—it’s about strategy. With just a 3% stake, Mastercard is signaling big ambitions in the high-value, cross-border payments space, an area where Corpay excels.

Mastercard CFO Sachin Mehra explained the move as a highly “synergistic” fit. While Mastercard leads in global, lower-value card payments through its financial institution partners, Corpay specializes in large, account-to-account corporate transactions, especially in the U.S.

By joining forces, the two companies are combining strengths. Corpay gains access to Mastercard’s global distribution and digital payment tools. Mastercard, in turn, taps into Corpay’s advanced platform, currency management, and big-ticket cross-border capabilities.

This partnership isn’t just an extension of their decade-long relationship—it’s a major strategic upgrade. Corpay will now be the exclusive provider of large-scale cross-border payment services and currency risk management to Mastercard’s banking clients. And in return, Corpay will offer Mastercard’s virtual cards exclusively to its business customers.

The timing of the investment is notable. Mastercard’s latest earnings showed a slowdown in cross-border volume growth—a potential red flag. Partnering with Corpay gives Mastercard a new edge in a fast-growing space and helps offset regional slowdowns with new capabilities.

For Corpay, this means greater reach, more revenue opportunities from banks, and a tighter integration into Mastercard’s ecosystem. For Mastercard, it’s a strategic move into the non-carded, high-value B2B payments market—one that’s only getting bigger.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Inc. is an American multinational financial services corporation founded in 1966 and headquartered in Purchase, New York. It operates one of the world’s leading payments networks, processing transactions for credit, debit, and prepaid cards, as well as ATM and digital payment systems under brands such as Cirrus, Maestro, Mondex, and Masterpass. In fiscal year 2024, the company reported revenues of US$ 28.2 billion, an operating income of US$15.6 billion, and a net income of US$ 12.9 billion, with total assets of US$ 48.1 billion, equity of US$ 6.49 billion, and approximately 35,300 employees worldwide.

Guided by Chair Merit Janow and CEO Michael Miebach, Mastercard’s mission is “to connect and power an inclusive digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible.” Beyond strengthening its core payment services, the company continues to innovate, launching a carbon footprint calculator for cardholders in April 2021 to help measure and reduce emissions, and in April 2025, unveiled global stablecoin acceptance capabilities, positioning itself at the forefront of programmable and secure digital currency solutions.

About Corpay

Corpay, Inc. (NYSE: CPAY) is a publicly traded S&P 500 corporate payments company headquartered in the Terminus 100 building in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Originally founded in 2000 and formerly known as FLEETCOR Technologies, the business officially rebranded as Corpay in March 2024 upon completing a strategic name-change initiative. Today, Corpay employs roughly 11,200 people and serves over 800,000 business clients across more than 100 countries, processing upwards of $145 billion in annual spend through a network of more than one million vendors.

Corpay delivers a full spectrum of payments and expense-management solutions—including commercial card programs, cross-border payments with integrated FX risk management, accounts-payable automation, and fuel & lodging payment services—under brands such as Comdata, PayByPhone, Sem Parar, and Paymerang (acquired May 2024 for $475 million). In fiscal 2024, the company posted revenue of $4.0 billion, operating income of $1.79 billion, net income of $1.00 billion, total assets of $17.9 billion, and shareholders’ equity of $3.15 billion.

Conclusion

The expanded partnership between Mastercard and Corpay reflects a targeted move to address the growing demand for efficient, transparent, and secure cross-border B2B payments. By combining Mastercard’s global reach and card network with Corpay’s expertise in large-scale transactions and currency risk management, the collaboration is designed to deliver broader capabilities to banks and businesses of all sizes.

This agreement not only strengthens each company’s position in the competitive payments landscape but also builds a framework to support future growth in both carded and non-carded payment channels.