Through this collaboration, Ajman Bank plans to implement Mastercard’s Carbon Calculator and sign its UAE Sustainable Cards Pledge.
According to a 2021 Mastercard study, nine in ten adults in the Middle East are willing to take personal action on sustainability issues. Over 72% of respondents in the region think it is now more important for businesses to do their part for the environment, and more than 25% will stop using brands that do not intend to behave sustainably. According to them, the focus should be on safeguarding the health and well-being of employees, reducing air and water pollution, and offering more sustainable and durable products.
In this context, the UAE Sustainable Cards Pledge, announced at the 28th UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, mobilises the country's banks to switch to cards made from more sustainable materials such as recycled or bio-sourced plastics. This way, according to the official press release, the UAE would become the first nation in the world to make this transition three years ahead of Mastercard's global deadline of 2028. Moreover, this initiative has had a strong uptake among key industry players, meaning that 80% of Mastercard cards issued in the local market from 2025 will be made from more sustainable materials. Currently, 576 issuers from 100 countries have signed up to transition 449 million cards across Mastercard's network.
Therefore, Mastercard is supporting its issuing partners with the transition away from first-use PVC by connecting them with approved suppliers who can produce their cards. The company has also prepared a dedicated toolkit that will assist its partners in converting their card portfolio. The press release further details that by integrating Mastercard's Carbon Calculator into its services, Ajman Bank will help its customers to make more environmentally conscious purchasing decisions. This, along with the bank’s participation in the UAE Sustainable Cards Pledge, will contribute to reducing the environmental impact of its operations.
Commenting on the announcement, Ajman Bank said that this improvement came as a natural extension of its long-standing strategic partnership with Mastercard. The bank also intended to be in line with its previous development for sustainability and the UAE's net-zero ambitions, minimising its ecological footprint.
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