MasterCard has been the most widely accepted payment card in the world . . . but not anymore! VISA is now accepted by 21.4 million merchants worldwide compared to MasterCard's 19.6 million. According to the latest domestic industry stats gathered by CardData and international data gathered by RAM Research Group, the number of VISA merchant locations soared by 15.9% last year from 18.5 million to 21.4 million (21,377,115). MasterCard merchant locations increased 12.9%, from 17.4 million to 19.6 million. If ATMs, member offices, and other locations are factored in, VISA still remains the king of global acceptance. MasterCard's total acceptance locations hit 21.0 million at the end of 2000 compared to VISA's 22.4 million. MasterCard still remains the most widely accepted card in Europe and Canada. VISA has a very strong lead in Latin America.                                                                                                                                     

MERCHANT LOCATIONS AROUND THE WORLD
(VISA versus MasterCard)
REGION	VISA	MASTERCARD
United States	4.7m	4.2m
Canada	568,000	600,000
Europe	4.9m	5.0m
Latin America	1.8m	1.1m
Asia Pacific	9.0m	8.6m
Rest	466,000	200,000
Source CardData (www.carddata.com) RAM Research Group Ltd (www.ramresearch.com)