Mastercard and Last Mile Solutions Partner on Payments at EV Charging Stations

Mastercard and Last Mile Solutions teamed up to make payments at electric vehicle (EV) charging stations more seamless.

Through the partnership, charge point operators (CPOs) will be able to integrate a variety of payment brands into their charging stations without the need for extensive integration efforts, Last Mile Solutions said in a Monday (Feb. 5) press release.

The solution will unify the user experience and simplify payment terminal integration, onboarding and transaction processing, per the release.

The companies aim to roll out the integration across Europe early this year, allowing CPOs to comply with the EU alternative fuels infrastructure regulation (AFIR), which will be effective in April, the release said.

“The transition to the mass adoption of electric mobility is key to building a more sustainable world,” George Simon, executive vice president of market development in Europe for Mastercard, said in the release. “Achieving this requires partnerships like these to make the transition as seamless as possible, not only for consumers but also for infrastructure operators.”

The move comes as more companies continue to watch the EV market.

Luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue, for example, partnered Tuesday (Feb. 6) with high-end electric vehicle company Lucid to sell cars. The tie-up aims to compete with digital retailers eating away at Saks’ market share.

By offering products with which many consumers continue to demand physical-world engagement before buying, such as cars, the company can keep consumers coming back to its physical stores.

Meanwhile, car rental company Hertz is downsizing its EV fleet due to high cost and low demand.

The company plans to sell 20,000 EVs from its U.S. fleet — or one-third of its global fleet — and replace them with internal combustion engine vehicles instead, which the company said are cheaper to maintain.

Hertz began selling the EVs in December and will continue doing so throughout 2024. In the meantime, those vehicles will be available for rental.