Item 6. [Reserved]

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Item 6. [Reserved]

47 MASTERCARD 2023 FORM 10-K

PART II

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Item 7. Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes of Mastercard Incorporated and its consolidated subsidiaries, including Mastercard International Incorporated (“Mastercard International”) (together, “Mastercard” or the “Company”), included elsewhere in this Report. Percentage changes provided throughout “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” were calculated on amounts rounded to the nearest thousand. For discussion related to the results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, please see Part II, Item 7 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Business Overview

Mastercard is a technology company in the global payments industry. We connect consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments, digital partners, businesses and other organizations worldwide by enabling electronic payments and making those payment transactions safe, simple, smart, and accessible. We make payments easier and more efficient by providing a wide range of payment solutions and services using our family of well-known and trusted brands, including Mastercard®, Maestro® and Cirrus®. We operate a multi-rail payments network that provides choice and flexibility for consumers, merchants and our customers. Through our unique and proprietary core global payments network, we switch (authorize, clear and settle) payment transactions. We have additional payments capabilities that include automated clearing house (“ACH”) transactions (both batch and real-time account-based payments). Using these capabilities, we offer payment products and services and capture new payment flows. Our value-added services include, among others, cyber and intelligence solutions designed to allow all parties to transact securely, easily and with confidence, as well as other services that provide proprietary insights, drawing on our principled and responsible use of secure consumer and merchant data. Our investments in new networks, such as open banking solutions and digital identity capabilities, support and strengthen our payments and services solutions. Each of our capabilities support and build upon each other and are fundamentally interdependent. For our core global payments network, our franchise model sets the standards and ground-rules that balance value and risk across all stakeholders and allows for interoperability among them. We employ a multi-layered approach to help protect the global payments ecosystem in which we operate.

Mastercard is not a financial institution. We do not issue cards, extend credit, determine or receive revenue from interest rates or other fees charged to account holders by issuers, or establish the rates charged by acquirers in connection with merchants’ acceptance of our products. In most cases, account holder relationships belong to, and are managed by, our customers.

Financial Results Overview

The following table provides a summary of our key GAAP operating results, as reported:

Year ended December 31,2023 Increase/ (Decrease)2022 Increase/ (Decrease)
202320222021
(in millions, except per share data)
Net revenue$25,098$22,237$18,88413%18%
Operating expenses$11,090$9,973$8,80211%13%
Operating income$14,008$12,264$10,08214%22%
Operating margin55.8%55.2%53.4%0.7 ppt1.8 ppt
Income tax expense$2,444$1,802$1,62036%11%
Effective income tax rate17.9%15.4%15.7%2.6 ppt(0.4) ppt
Net income$11,195$9,930$8,68713%14%
Diluted earnings per share$11.83$10.22$8.7616%17%
Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding946971992(3)%(2)%

MASTERCARD 2023 FORM 10-K 48

PART II

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following table provides a summary of our key non-GAAP operating results1, adjusted to exclude the impact of gains and losses on our equity investments, Special Items (which represent litigation judgments and settlements and certain one-time items) and the related tax impacts on our non-GAAP adjustments. In addition, we have presented growth rates, adjusted for the impact of currency:

Year ended December 31,2023 Increase/(Decrease)2022 Increase/(Decrease)
202320222021As adjustedCurrency-neutralAs adjustedCurrency-neutral
($ in millions, except per share data)
Adjusted net revenue$25,098$22,200$18,88413%13%18%23%
Adjusted operating expenses$10,551$9,549$8,62710%11%11%14%
Adjusted operating margin58.0%57.0%54.3%1.0 ppt0.9 ppt2.7 ppt3.4 ppt
Adjusted effective income tax rate18.5%15.7%15.4%2.8 ppt2.7 ppt0.3 ppt0.5 ppt
Adjusted net income$11,607$10,342$8,33312%12%24%32%
Adjusted diluted earnings per share$12.26$10.65$8.4015%15%27%34%

Note: Tables may not sum due to rounding.

1 See “Non-GAAP Financial Information” for further information on our non-GAAP adjustments and the reconciliation to GAAP reported amounts.

Key highlights for 2023 as compared to 2022 were as follows:

Net revenueAdjusted net revenue
GAAPNon-GAAP (currency-neutral)Both the as reported and as adjusted net revenue increase was attributable to growth in our payment network and value-added services and solutions.
up 13%up 13%
Operating expensesAdjusted operating expenses
GAAPNon-GAAP (currency-neutral)Both the as reported and as adjusted operating expenses increase was primarily due to higher personnel costs and includes 1 percentage point of growth due to acquisitions.
up 11%up 11%
Effective income tax rateAdjusted effective income tax rate
GAAPNon-GAAPBoth the as reported and as adjusted effective income tax rates were higher than the prior year rates primarily due to the release of a $333 million valuation allowance in 2022 and the establishment of a $327 million valuation allowance in 2023, partially offset by the ability to claim more U.S. foreign tax credits generated in 2022 and 2023.
17.9%18.5%

Other 2023 financial highlights were as follows:

  • We generated net cash flows from operations of $12.0 billion.

  • We repurchased 23.8 million shares of our common stock for $9.0 billion and paid dividends of $2.2 billion.

  • We completed a debt offering for an aggregate principal amount of $1.5 billion.

49 MASTERCARD 2023 FORM 10-K

PART II

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Non-GAAP Financial Information

Non-GAAP financial information is defined as a numerical measure of a company’s performance that excludes or includes amounts so as to be different than the most comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). Our non-GAAP financial measures exclude the impact of gains and losses on our equity investments which includes mark-to-market fair value adjustments, impairments and gains and losses upon disposition and the related tax impacts. Our non-GAAP financial measures also exclude the impact of special items, where applicable, which represent litigation judgments and settlements and certain one-time items, as well as the related tax impacts (“Special Items”). We also present growth rates adjusted for the impact of currency, which is a non-GAAP financial measure. We believe that the non-GAAP financial measures presented facilitate an understanding of our operating performance and provide a meaningful comparison of our results between periods. We use non-GAAP financial measures to, among other things, evaluate our ongoing operations in relation to historical results, for internal planning and forecasting purposes and in the calculation of performance-based compensation. We excluded these items because management evaluates the underlying operations and performance of the Company separately from these recurring and nonrecurring items. Net revenue, operating expenses, operating margin, other income (expense), effective income tax rate, net income and diluted earnings per share adjusted for the impact of gains and losses on our equity investments, Special Items and/or the impact of currency should not be relied upon as substitutes for measures calculated in accordance with GAAP.

Our non-GAAP financial measures for the comparable periods exclude the impact of the following:

Gains and Losses on Equity Investments

  • During 2023, 2022 and 2021, we recorded net pre-tax losses of $61 million ($36 million after tax, or $0.04 per diluted share), net pre-tax losses of $145 million ($126 million after tax, or $0.13 per diluted share) and net pre-tax gains of $645 million ($497 million after tax, or $0.50 per diluted share), respectively. These net gains and losses were primarily related to unrealized fair market value adjustments on marketable and nonmarketable equity securities. In addition, in 2021, net gains also included realized gains on sales of marketable equity securities.

Special Items

Litigation provisions

  • During 2023, we recorded pre-tax charges of $539 million ($376 million after tax, or $0.40 per diluted share) related to litigation provisions, which included pre-tax charges of:

◦$344 million as a result of changes in the estimate related to the claims of merchants who opted out of the U.S. merchant class litigation, and

◦$195 million as a result of settlements with a number of U.K. and Pan-European merchants.

  • During 2022, we recorded pre-tax charges of $356 million ($263 million after tax, or $0.27 per diluted share) related to litigation provisions, which included pre-tax charges of:

◦$223 million as a result of settlements (both final and agreements in principle) with a number of U.K. merchants, and

◦$133 million as a result of a change in estimate related to the claims of merchants who opted out of the U.S. merchant class litigation.

  • During 2021, we recorded pre-tax charges of $94 million ($74 million after tax, or $0.07 per diluted share) related to litigation settlements and estimated attorneys’ fees with U.K. and Pan-European merchants.

Russia-related impacts

  • During 2022, we recorded a net pre-tax charge of $30 million ($24 million after tax, or $0.02 per diluted share), directly related to imposed sanctions and the suspension of our business operations in Russia. The net charge was comprised of general and administrative expenses of $67 million, primarily related to incremental employee-related costs and reserves on uncollectible balances with certain sanctioned customers. This charge was offset by net benefits of $37 million in net revenue, primarily related to a reduction in payment network rebates and incentives liabilities as a result of lower estimates of customer performance for certain customer business agreements due to the suspension of our business operations in Russia.

Indirect tax matter

  • During 2021, we recorded a pre-tax charge of $88 million ($69 million after tax, or $0.07 per diluted share) to resolve a foreign indirect tax matter for 2015 through 2021 and the related interest expense. The charge was comprised of general and administrative expenses of $82 million and other income (expense) of $6 million.

MASTERCARD 2023 FORM 10-K 50

PART II

Previous: Item 5. Market for registrant’s common equity, related stockholder matters and issuer purchases of equity securities · Next: Item 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS