In an announcement at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga announced that Mastercard will open its latest global technology centre in Vancouver.
Located in the restored old Stock Exchange building, the new Intelligence and Cyber Centre is being launched in partnership with the Government of Canada with $49-million in incentives through its Strategic Innovation Fund, with an additional $510 million investment by Mastercard.
The centre will create 270 jobs by 2029 and hire 100 students on co-op work terms.
The new space in Vancouver will become one of six global technology centres for Mastercard and will accelerate innovation in digital and cyber security, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things.
“Ensuring payments are both convenient and secure has always been a top priority for Mastercard,” said Banga. “The Vancouver centre will help us meet the growing demand for technology solutions to reduce the cost of cyber-attacks, enable today’s connected devices to become tomorrow’s secure payment devices, and address the growing vulnerabilities associated with the Internet of Things.”
This expansion is the latest in a series of investments by Mastercard in Canada, reinforcing the company’s commitment to supporting Canadian innovation and technology talent. In 2017, Mastercard acquired Vancouver-based NuData Security.
The Vancouver office is currently home to the 100 employees from the NuData Security team with added members from Mastercard’s Research & Development, Operations & Technology, and Cyber & Intelligence divisions.
The investment will open roles for software engineers, data scientists, project managers, analysts, product designers and information security experts.
“As Canadians use connected devices more and more, including for sensitive financial services like banking, they want to know that their data and privacy are protected,” added Bains.
“Our government is investing in a new cybersecurity centre in Canada to develop the technology solutions Canadians and people all over the world need to protect their personal and financial information when they use their devices. This will make Canada a world leader in cybersecurity and help us tackle the cost of cybercrime in Canada—an estimated $3 billion a year.”