Dubai-based global port operator DP World and US-based multinational financial services company Mastercard have joined hands to digitalise payments at its ports, the media reported.
The partnership will see both DP World and Mastercard create a facility that will help cargo owners and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to pay for their freight-related costs digitally.
So far, the programme, which is called the Port Payments Digitization Project, has been launched through the co-branded Trade Card in the Dominican Republic and will be rolled out in Latin America and then across DP World’s global port operations.
Morten Johansen, executive director of DP World Caucedo, told the media, “This partnership is an important addition to DP World’s digital transformation campaign. We are delighted that Mastercard has joined us in advance reflection and sharing our two-thirds experience enables smarter global commerce. This will help SMEs and cargo owners in general in the Dominican Republic to gain better access to the global economy and be an engine of economic growth. Our plan is to use the learnings from this pilot project to expand this partnership to other parts of the world.”
Reportedly, SMEs represent around 95 percent of all companies in Latin America, generating two-thirds of all jobs. However, the participation of SMEs in world trade as a proportion of the total for Latin America is less than 13 percent.
Last month, DP World launched a digital global trade supply chain platform, which will enable freight forwarders and any business, to book shipments of cargo from and to anywhere in the world, by any combination of sea, land and air.