Mastercard has unveiled a new Africa Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, a continent-wide initiative designed to help financial institutions, governments and businesses strengthen their cyber defences through enhanced collaboration and intelligence sharing.
The initiative will be introduced in phases, beginning this year in South Africa and Nigeria.
The announcement coincided with a visit by Mastercard Chief Executive Michael Miebach to both countries and received backing from South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.
Mastercard said the project builds on commitments it made to the South African government during the G20 meetings in Johannesburg last year, as well as discussions recently held in Abuja.
The company has released limited details about the centre, describing it as a virtual platform delivered through interconnected digital systems rather than a physical facility. It has not disclosed the value of the investment, identified local partners or revealed staffing plans.
During its first year, the centre will offer cyber risk assessments for up to 50 organisations and provide an Africa-focused threat intelligence service powered by Recorded Future, the cyber intelligence company acquired by Mastercard in December 2024 for US$2.65 billion. Other planned services include collaboration among chief information security officers, cyber resilience exercises and security assessments.
The initiative marks another step in Mastercard’s evolution beyond card payments into cybersecurity and intelligence services, which it increasingly offers alongside its payment solutions as Africa’s digital economy continues to expand.
Mastercard said it has invested more than US$12.6 billion in cybersecurity since 2018, although it did not provide a breakdown of that spending.
The company noted that South Africa remains Africa’s most targeted country for cyberattacks, accounting for around 29 per cent of ransomware incidents and 40 per cent of phishing attacks across the continent. It also estimated that only about 35 per cent of cyber incidents are reported. Mastercard projects that Africa’s digital economy will be worth US$1.5 trillion by 2030.
According to Interpol’s 2025 Africa Cyberthreat Assessment, based on data from Trend Micro, South Africa recorded the highest number of ransomware detections in Africa, with 17,849 incidents, ahead of Egypt’s 12,281. The report also found that phishing accounted for roughly one-third of reported cyber incidents across the continent, while cumulative cybercrime losses in Africa exceeded US$3 billion between 2019 and 2025.
Mastercard argues that building trust is essential to supporting Africa’s digital transformation, with cybersecurity becoming an increasingly important part of the services it offers.
