Mastercard Maestro

Maestro logo used since July 14, 2016
Product type	Debit card
Owner	Mastercard Inc.
Country	United States
Introduced	1991
Discontinued	July 1, 2023 (2023-07-01) (few European countries only)
Related brands	Debit Mastercard
Markets	Worldwide
Website	www.mastercard.com

Mastercard Maestro is a brand ofdebit cards andprepaid cards owned byMastercard that was introduced in 1991.^[1] Maestro is accepted at around fifteen million point of sale outlets in 93 countries.^[2]

On July 1, 2023, Mastercard began phasing out Maestro across Europe. European banks and other card issuers are now required to replace expired or lost Maestro cards with a different card.^[3]

Maestro debit cards are obtained from associate banks and are linked to the cardholder'ssavings account,current account or any of several other types of accounts, whileprepaid cards do not require a bank account to operate. Maestro cards can be used atpoint of sale (POS) andATMs. Payments are made by swiping cards through thepayment terminal, insertion into achip and PIN device or by a contactless reader. The payment is authorized by thecard issuer to ensure that the cardholder has sufficient funds in their account to make the purchase. The cardholder then confirms the payment by either signing the sales receipt or entering their 4- to 6-digitPIN, except with contactless transactions below a specified amount for which no further verification is required.

Maestro often requires on-line electronic authorization for every transaction, although Mastercard's rules permit the establishment of floor limits on MaestroEMV chip transactions only. Not only must the information stored in either thechip or themagnetic stripe be read, but this has to be sent from the merchant to the issuing bank, the issuing bank then has to respond with an affirmative authorization. If the information is not read, the issuer will decline the transaction, regardless of any disposable amount on the connected account, except in the Asia Pacific region, where manual keyed entry is permitted under some circumstances. This is different from most other debit andcredit cards, where the information can be entered manually into the terminal (i.e. by typing the 13 to 19 digits and the expiry date on the terminal) and still be approved by theissuer or stand-in processor. In most countries, other than those specified in Mastercard's rules, a PIN rather than a signature is always required to authorise a Maestro transaction, except where no CVM (Cardholder Verification Method)^[4] is required.

Country/Region	Available	Replaced	Replaced by	Notes
Argentina	Yes			Maestro is the card used by theBanco de la Nación Argentina and other banks, mostly state-run or provincial banks.
Brazil	Yes*	Redeshop		Mastercard acquired the existing Redeshop service in 2002 and rebranded it as Maestro, a few years later Mastercard rebranded their Mastercard Maestro to “Mastercard Débito“, where the name may erroneously suggest that it is a “Debit Mastercard“, but internally the cards are still Maestro. It is standard for most Brazilian credit cards to have a "dual-function" (when offered by the bank) where usually the bank debit card (Mastercard Maestro,Visa Electron orElo) also has a credit function (usually the only brand in front of the card isMastercard,Visa orElo). When inserting, swiping or tapping the card it presents both functions to PoS and the seller selects which one to use.
Chile	Yes*			Maestro debit cards are widely used, dual-branded with RedCompra, issued by the majority of banks (Santander issued only Maestro debit cards up to 2020[5]). They operate through the local Transbank andCirrus network. Usually, Chilean Maestro cards have a small logo on the back of the card.Debit Mastercard cards are issued by Coopeuch andSantander. Chilean Maestro cards usually are contactless.
Colombia	Yes			Davivienda,Colpatria,Helm Bank (of CorpBanca),Itaú Corpbanca,Banco AV Villas and other banks use Maestro and Cirrus system in their debit cards.
United States	Yes		Visa andCirrus at some banks	Maestro is a PIN-based debit card network closely related to theCirrusATM network, also owned byMastercard. Like other PIN-debit networks in the U.S., Maestro there relies solely on a standard card and PIN, without a chip; signature-debit transactions in the U.S. are handled through the mainMastercard network or the rivalVisa network. RBS's former U.S. subsidiary,Citizens Financial Group, switched to Visa, though like most foreign banks with operations in theUnited States, it used MasterCard'sCirrus network and the card participated in theMastercard SecureCode initiative. Maestro is accepted at several banks (First Hawaiian and Home Street Bank) in Hawaii.
Uruguay	Yes			Maestro was until recently[6] the only debit card network issued byBanco de la República Oriental del Uruguay. Since BROU is the largest bank in Uruguay,[7] this means that Maestro is likely the largest network in Uruguay.
Venezuela	Yes			Maestro is extremely popular. It is as of 2014, the leading debit card, issued by almost all major banks in the country. It is widely accepted in PoS. It works on all ATMs showing theSuiche7B,Mastercard, Conexus andCirrus logos.
Canada	Yes

Country/Region	Available	Replaced	Replaced by	Notes
China	No		Debit Mastercard orVisa Debit	Bank of China used Maestro as its "international" debit card system in some areas before, but stopped issuing it from September 2016.[8] In April 2017, they launched "Cross-Border" EMV Debit Card with Visa and Mastercard.[9][10] Most ATMs owned by nationwide commercial banks still accept Maestro card. Also, certain ATMs will present the user with foreign language options upon insertion of a Maestro card.
Hong Kong	No		Debit Mastercard	Standard Chartered Hong Kong used Maestro as one of the ATM card systems. However, the clients should make the request for using the Maestro in advance, or the bank would only issue theUnionPay ATM Card to new clients as default. In end-2021, the Bank announced the replacement of Maestro cards with MasterCard debit card.
India	Yes		Debit Mastercard	Maestro is issued by most major banks, exceptICICI Bank. Maestro issuing banks include theState Bank of India (India's largest bank), State Bank's affiliate banks,Punjab National Bank,Syndicate Bank,Oriental Bank of Commerce,Bank of Rajasthan, etc. The bank would only issue the RuPay ATM Card to new clients as default.
Israel	No			Maestro Cards cannot be used at point of sales locations to make purchases but theCirrus network is accepted at a majority of cash points most of the time. The exception is the 'First International Bank of Israel' (FIBI) who do not acceptCirrus. The most common debit cards by Mastercard are branded Mastercard Direct (operated for the banks offer the card by Isracard). Otherwise (but to a much smaller scale) offered Mastercard Debit by banks like Israeli Discount Bank & Mercantile Bank.
Philippines	Yes		Debit Mastercard
Indonesia	Yes		Debit Mastercard	Most banks that previously issued Maestro cards have transitioned to Debit Mastercard for new or existing customers who renew their cards.
Singapore	Yes		Debit Mastercard
Taiwan	Yes		Debit Mastercard
South Korea	Yes
Macau	No

Country/Region	Available	Replaced	Replaced by	Notes
Austria	Yes	Eurocheque	Debit Mastercard	Beginning with 2019, Austria's largest bank by assetsErste Group[11] began replacing Austrian Maestro cards withDebit Mastercard.[12] Other banks followed in 2020 and 2021.
Belgium	Yes		Visa Debit orDebit Mastercard	Co-branded withBancontact.BNP Paribas Fortis group started issuing co-branded Bancontact andVisa Debit cards in 2021.Keytrade Bank also started issuing co-branded Bancontact/Visa Debit cards in 2023. Two Crelan Group-owned banks (Crelan andEuropabank [nl]) also switched over to co-branded Visa Debit/Bancontact debit cards (Axa Bank will merge with Crelan itself in June 2024[13]).Belfius,KBC Group,Beobank &Argenta (bank) started issuing co-branded Bancontact/Debit Mastercard in 2023.
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Yes		Debit Mastercard	UniCredit Bank made the switch from Maestro toMastercard on June 1, 2016.[14]
Croatia	Yes		Visa Debit orDebit Mastercard	Reiffeisenbank Hrvatska replaced Maestro card with Debit Mastercard (with vertical design) in 2019.[15] Erste Bank replaced Maestro with Visa Debit in 2020,[16] and Croatia's largest bank,Zagrebačka banka, did the same in 2021.[17]
Denmark	Yes		Debit Mastercard	Maestro has been replaced by the banks that issued it withDebit Mastercard. Moreover, the largest Danish bankDanske Bank has replaced all of itscash cards with Debit Mastercards.
Germany	Yes	Eurocheque		In most cases co-branded with the GermanGirocard logo, but they cannot be used as Maestro over the telephone or on the internet. As of 2020, theSparkassen-Finanzgruppe announced to introduce a new co-branded Girocard using theDebit Mastercard system and effectively replacing the Maestro co-badge slowly.[18]
Greece	Yes			Maestro debit cards have been issued by several major banks.[19] However, as of March 2015 all four major Greek banks have replaced Maestro cards with contactlessDebit Mastercard.
Iceland	Yes		Debit Mastercard orVisa Debit	Maestro debit cards have been issued by several major banks.For example: an old Íslandsbanki request form for banking products includes Maestro and Electron debit card options: However, as of 2015, all banks have replaced them with contactlessDebit Mastercard orVisa Debit cards.[20][21]
Ireland	Yes	Laser		Laser, which was co-branded with Maestro, has been replaced byVisa Debit andDebit Mastercard. TheLaser debit card has been phased out by all banks and ceased to operate from March 2014. IrishLaser cards carried Maestro co-branding from 2008 onwards. They were intended to be used withchip and PIN POS systems. The chip on the card was programmed with two applications, one forLaser and one for Maestro. POS transactions were normally processed over theLaser network in Ireland and the Maestro network when the card was used abroad. Some POS terminals prompted users to manually selectLaser or Maestro before completing the transaction.Laser cards could be processed as Maestro in most POS terminals worldwide for chip and PIN or swipe and sign transactions (where still accepted). Internet and telephone-based retailers, however, needed to be set up specifically to accept IrishLaser/Maestro cards. Transactions made with these cards were often secured by MasterCard's SecureCode system to verify the cardholder's identity. These cards were usually multi-functional and operated as a debit card as well as an ATM Card which could be used for accessing ATMs. Some banks also allowed customers to use their cards to deposit or withdraw money over the counter or atAn Post post offices using their debit card and PIN. Historically the cards often contained aCheque guarantee card function indicated by a hologram. This scheme was shut down in 2011. Foreign-issued Maestro cards are still accepted in Ireland in ATMs and by many POS machines. However, acceptance of Visa and MasterCard debit/credit cards is more reliably universal at POS terminals.
Italy	Yes			Usually co-branded with the nationalBancomat/PagoBancomat and internationalCirrus scheme. Most banks issue Mastercard Maestro, while some issueVisa Debit andV Pay cards.
Netherlands	Yes	PIN	Debit Mastercard orVisa Debit	Most banks issue Maestro debit cards, with onlyDe Volksbank andING offering bothV Pay and Maestro branded cards.[22][23] Prior to January 1, 2012, Dutch Maestro debit cards were co-branded with the nationalPIN scheme. This scheme has since been retired and replaced by Maestro and V Pay. And starting in 2022 shop owners will be required to start adding support for Debit Mastercard & Visa Debit to their POS-terminals.[24]
Romania	Yes		Debit Mastercard	Maestro was a popular debit card which was offered by major banks for about 20 years until it was replaced with other Card Schemes, mainly with Mastercard Debit and Visa Debit.
Russia	No		Mir	Maestro was issued by banks includingSberbank, which issues cards such as Mastercard Maestro Momentum and the Mastercard Maestro Social debit card. After theRussian invasion of Ukraine, banks stopped issuingVisa, MasterCard and Maestro cards as they left Russia, and started issuing cards withMir Payment System. Despite that, old and non-expired Maestro cards still work inside Russia.
Serbia	Yes		Visa Debit	Maestro debit cards are issued by several banks inSerbia. The main issuer wasBanca Intesa Beograd until, in September 2012,Banca Intesa Beograd began to switch to Visa.[25]
Switzerland	Yes		Debit Mastercard orVisa Debit
United Kingdom	Yes	Switch		The formerSwitch debit card system was re-branded as Maestro. Underneath the branding, however, the system was still the old Switch one and the cards were still fundamentally Switch. In 2011, MasterCard aligned UK domestic Maestro cards (the former Switch) with the standard international Maestro system, ending its status as a separate card scheme. This change also led to the discontinuation of theSolo debit card.[26] In January 2009First Direct andHSBC discontinued the use of Maestro cards, issuingVisa Debit cards to new customers and a gradual roll-out throughout 2009 to existing customers. In September of the same year, the British arms of theNational Australia Bank, namelyClydesdale Bank andYorkshire Bank, started the process of replacing the Maestro card with aDebit Mastercard for their current accounts, except for the Readycash and Student accounts, for which the Maestro card continued to be issued until 2015. Likewise, in the same month theRoyal Bank of Scotland Group (Europe's largest debit card issuer which includes theNatWest,Coutts andUlster Bank brands) switched from Maestro to Visa Debit, a process that took two years to complete.[27][28][29] This effectively meant that only a few smaller UK banks would be issuing Maestro cards. In 2015,Bank of Ireland UK replaced its Maestro debit cards withVisa Debit cards. Few if any issuers still issue Maestro cards nowadays in the UK, and acceptance of non-UK Maestro cards is patchy.

Maestro logo used from May 1992 until September 1996

Maestro logo used from September 1996 until 14 July 2016.

Maestro logo used since 14 July 2016.

Mastercard Maestro logo used from 2004 in Brazil only.

• RuPay
• ATM usage fees

• Financial services companies established in 1991
• Debit cards
• Debit card issuer associations
• Mastercard
• Products introduced in 1991
• Products and services discontinued in 2023

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