It’s been a staple of credit cards for decades, but starting in 2024, Mastercard is getting rid of a signature element of the card; magnetic stripes. 

It’s all part of their elaborate plan to shift towards more secure or convenient alternatives to the old-fashioned stripe. Things like chips and contactless payments, which are so much safer and modern. 

The transition launches in two years.  Starting then, the stripe will no longer be a requirement in parts of Europe.  

The U.S. is lagging behind, and the transition here will begin in 2027.  

By 2033, the stripes are gone forever. 

A story in The Verge revealed how back in the 90’s the EMV chip standard was introduced, which ushered in an era for cardholder’s data to be secured much safer than in the past. 86% of in-person credit card transactions use EMV chips now. 

The percentage is lower in the U.S. though. Just over 70% of our transactions use EMV technology. 

Where the trends are really pointing though are contactless transactions and payments.  Just this year, there were 1 billion more transaction in the first quarter of this year than a year ago. 

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