Mastercard and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) on Thursday (10 Sep) announced a partnership, with STB being the first National Tourism Organisation to join Mastercard’s City Possible programme.
As part of the programme, the two partners will collaborate on addressing challenges faced by Singapore’s tourism industry. Through the partnership, a range of solutions and initiatives will be explored to help the sector transform their businesses, pivot to new audiences, and prepare for the gradual return of international visitors.
With increased demand for contactless options in a COVID-19 world, the partnership will commence with co-creating digital initiatives for seamless international travel and e-commerce, while enhancing the experience for consumers.
This partnership is under Mastercard’s City Possible program, which has been designed with the vision to #MakeTechWorkForPeople by aligning key stakeholders to address challenging issues faced by city planners.
City Possible connects its members to holistic urban solutions and provides unrivalled access to the best knowledge and expertise from a global community of urban leaders, businesses, NGOs, and academics.
This partnership will see Mastercard and STB collaborating on these projects with the following objectives:
Joint Technology Development – The partners will work together to research and develop ways to enhance STB’s Visit Singapore Pass (VSP)[1] to provide more contactless ticketing and payments for tourism offerings in Singapore. This will provide a more seamless journey for all consumers in Singapore, tourists, and locals alike.
Mastercard’s City Possible programme would provide strong support for the joint technology development, by dedicating talent and expertise from Mastercard’s Singapore-based Labs team to work on the project.
In addition, the partners would also be able to leverage City Possible’s global network of knowledge and expertise on urban solutions to further innovate in the project.
Generate Insights and Identify Trends – The partners will also share data insights[2] and collaborate in using the insights for business planning in the tourism industry. For example, information on spending patterns and trends could help the tourism industry better plan the launch timings of promotions and campaigns.
Joint Marketing- The partners will identify opportunities to work together on joint marketing and advertising campaigns that will drive visitorship to Singapore’s tourism offerings, as Singapore prepares for the gradual return of international visitors.
“We are honoured to partner Mastercard as this collaboration will allow for greater sharing of ideas, resources, and expertise. This partnership places Singapore and STB on the path to becoming a global lab for solutions and pilots, creating travel experiences that are safe, yet personalised to the needs of our visitors,” said Keith Tan, Chief Executive at Singapore Tourism Board.
“The partnership is also in line with our efforts to transform and build new capabilities for our tourism industry. As we chart a new path forward for the tourism sector, it is crucial to develop and implement solutions that can meet evolving consumer needs,” he added.
“The way we live, work, travel and consume has undergone rapid changes due to the pandemic. Mastercard Impact Studies show that more people are adopting digital technologies, especially for payments and e-commerce, to stay safe and continue everyday living with peace of mind. There is an urgent need for public and private sector players to work together to identify the best strategies for all industries to digitize, be flexible, and agile in efforts to keep up with new consumer demands,” noted Ari Sarker, Co-President for Asia Pacific at Mastercard.
“Singapore Tourism Board has always been on the cutting edge of technological innovation, helping Singapore to maintain its leading position among the top five most popular cities in the world for international travellers. Mastercard looks forward to working closely with STB, to reimagine Singapore’s travel sector,” he added.