Mastercard System Update Causes Widespread Payment Issues in Australia
A scheduled system update by Mastercard caused widespread payment issues across Australia on Saturday afternoon. The company described the problem as temporary and said all systems were working normally by evening.
More than 1,900 outage reports were logged on Downdetector in Sydney by 3:27 pm local time, with transfers and mobile banking being the most common complaints.
Australians were prepared for the cashless crisis, with Reserve Bank research showing that 15% of payments by number are made in cash by 2025, up from 13% in 2022. The median amount of cash carried is around AU$65 per person, and over three-quarters of people hold some cash due to concerns about electronic payment reliability.
The European Central Bank has been addressing similar issues with its digital euro pilot, which aims to provide a resilient currency that can function even when foreign card networks are down. The UK has also designated major tech companies like Microsoft, Google, and Amazon as critical third parties to its financial system, bringing them under direct oversight.