Maestro
Maestro is a multi-national debit card system that is owned and administered through Mastercard. Maestro cards are debit cards that can be used to make real world purchases, debiting the required funds via the card owner's bank account. Cards are issued along with a PIN number which allows transactions to be made via a chip and pin machine, or at an ATM to withdraw cash. Maestro cards can also be used for online purchases where accepted - card owners only need usually to enter their card number and the card's expiry date. Occassionally a separate password is needed to authorise the transaction.
Maestro cards are issued by many banks and financial institutions who are part of the system. Banks charge retailers a certain percentage of any transactions made using the card, while Mastercard charge banks a certain percentage of all fees gathered. Sometimes Mastercard will offer merchants the chance to pay a one-off yearly fee for the use of the Maestro system, as opposed to the percentage per sale.
Maestro cards are accepted at around twelve million points of sale, all over the world.
Maestro History
Mastercard introduced the Maestro card in 1992, as a new brand that was part of their Cirrus international banking system, which they had introduced a decade earlier. All three Mastercard brands can be identified by the symbol of two interlocking circles in different colours: Red and orange (Mastercard), blue and red (Maestro) and Purple and blue (Cirrus).
The Cirrus card had been introduced by Mastercard to allow card owners to withdraw cash from ATMs. The Maestro card was introduced to allow users to make retail debit purchases using the card, and to withdraw cash from ATMs as well. The Mastercard is a credit card as opposed to a debit card, and any purchases made on the card are subject to the standard fees and interest payments associated with credit cards.
Maestro cards, Cirrus cards and Mastercards can all be used at ATMs that display the Maestro, Cirrus or Mastercard symbol. Maestro cards can be used to make retail purchases at any retail store or website where the Maestro or Mastercard symbol is displayed. Cirrus cards or accounts cannot be used to make purchases.
In the UK, Maestro was part of the Switch electronic banking system, but eventually Switch was phased out as a brand to be replaced by Maestro, even though Maestro cards used the old Switch system. Maestro cards were not part of the international Maestro banking system until 2011. Most UK banks now issue either Maestro cards for debits to banking accounts, or the rival debit card system, Visa Debit.
Maestro Today
Maestro is one of the most popular debit card systems in the world, and most ATMs that are part of the Cirrus network will display the Maestro symbol in preference. It is only really in the United States, Canada and Saudi Arabia that the Cirrus symbol is preferred to the Maestro one. Also in the United States, Maestro cards are issued without a chip, unlike most of the rest of the world. To make a debit transaction in the United States, only a PIN number is required.
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