Along with the booming wealth in second- and third-tier cities, demand from local residents' overseas tourism and buying sprees is also rising.

"To meet the needs of these consumers, we will cooperate with some regional banks as well as small and medium international banks," said Ling.

For instance, MasterCard issued its World Card in cooperation with Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank last October.

Visa Inc, a major competitor of MasterCard, made a similar move. Visa recently partnered with Haikou Bank to issue a single currency credit card in China. It was the first time Visa cooperated with a regional city commercial bank to issue a single currency credit card as it eyed up opportunities in second- and third-tier cities.

"Developing business in second- and third-tier cities is also part of our core business, rather than a new business," said Ling. "Continuing to look for new customers and meet their needs has always been our task."

However, compared with first-tier cities, business volumes from second- and third-tier cities are much smaller.

"But in order to create our vision of a society beyond cash, we will do everything to meet customer demand from second- and third-tier cities," Ling said, adding that innovation determines the future.

"Take mobile payment as an example. We are discussing issues such as whether a physical card will still be in use in the next two years, or whether it will be replaced by mobile payment. We are constantly thinking about the future of the payment industry," Ling said.

For Ling, innovation is like the construction of a highway. The initial stage is very hard. But once the construction is finished, there will be traffic flow. The cars can go wherever the road extends.

However, the highway will not be immutable. As technology advances, the future highway may be developed in any direction, even upwards.

"From the moment of initial development, if we remain immersed in the past and do not grasp opportunities, we will be left behind. We always have a strong sense of crisis. Therefore, we remind our staff to always keep the spirit of innovation in mind," Ling said.

Looking to the future

Ling said mobile payment and e-commerce will always be the focus for MasterCard.

Ling joined the company in January 2010 as division president of Greater China for MasterCard Worldwide. In this capacity, Ling oversees all aspects of MasterCard operations in Greater China, with the objective of building the business and promoting the MasterCard brand. His responsibilities include forging closer business alliances with customers, enhancing MasterCard brand awareness and promoting the usage and acceptance of MasterCard.

Prior to that, Ling was head of partnership business and co-brand marketing with PCCC, a joint venture between HSBC and Bank of Communications.

Before that, Ling worked with Bank of America, where he oversaw product development and customer insights at card services in the United States. He also worked with Booz Allen & Hamilton and A.T. Kearney in both the United States and China and consulted clients in financial services to launch new products and improve business processes.

Ling graduated from the College of Saint Rose in New York and obtained an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

According to Wu Huanyu, a senior manager at MasterCard, Ling always looks to diversify business rather than stick to its core businesses. "He is an advocate for new ideas and innovation but is also quite rational about taking risks," said Wu. "You will be easily impressed by his talent for analysis and decision making."

Under Ling's leadership, MasterCard continued its commitment to mobile payment in China and outlined its vision on how to reach the next billion consumers through mobile innovation and partnerships.

For Ling, the future of reaching the next billion consumers through mobile channels is fuelled by cooperation and innovation in a collective effort by all the players in the "ecosystem", including technology providers, mobile network operators and financial institutions.

"Mobile presents a significant opportunity to bring commerce and banking into the hands of customers around the world. Through an innovative approach to mobile commerce, MasterCard and our partners are striving to unlock the full potential of mobile commerce and bring billions of consumers into a world beyond cash", said Ling.

The company made several moves in the mobile payment sector in 2012. They included the unveiling of Wanda, a joint venture between Telefnica and MasterCard - a new corporate and consumer brand designed to provide mobile payment solutions to more than 87 million Movistar customers in its Latin American markets. Movistar is a major Spanish mobile phone operator owned by Telefnica SA.

These mobile payment services will be linked to a mobile wallet or prepaid account that will allow for money transfers, mobile airtime reload, bill payment and retail purchases, among other services. The mobile wallet and prepaid accounts will be available anytime, anywhere in the world.

huyuanyuan@chinadaily.com.cn