i2c, Inc., a provider of payment processing and emerging commerce solutions, has announced that its issuing processing platform, MCP, now processes payment transactions for consumers in 216 countries and territories. MCP is a global payment processing platform from which companies can launch and manage card-based, virtual and mobile payment products.

i2c's global expansion is a byproduct of the effort to provide the world's unbanked population, estimated at 2.5 billion by the World Bank, with new financial products. The unbanked population's reliance on cash, coupled with their increasing use of mobile phones, has created a huge market opportunity for alternative financial products such as prepaid cards and mobile payments.

“i2c provides the payment processing, mobile, loyalty and back office infrastructure companies need in order to launch and profitably manage these products,” said Jim Ackerson, Senior Vice President at i2c.

The company, which is certified with Visa and MasterCard for global processing, most recently helped clients in Latin America & the Caribbean, Africa and Asia go to market with new payment products. Last month i2c announced plans to bring a new data center online in Shanghai, China.

Terry Xie of Mercator Advisory Group says that companies looking to compete in the global market for prepaid and emerging payments need a nimble processor that can help them build a differentiated product. “Getting to market quickly and utilizing a processing platform similar to i2c's which has a range of loyalty, rewards and mobile features will be essential to success,” he said.

i2c's MCP platform was designed from inception with native globalization support and a business rules-driven framework. As a result, i2c clients can launch fully customized payment products anywhere in the world in as little as 30 days.

About i2c, Inc.

i2c, Inc. provides the infrastructure financial institutions, corporations, brands and governments need to launch and profitably manage payment and next-generation commerce products. It's global-ready product suite encompasses card-based, virtual and mobile payments, loyalty and back office solutions. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, i2c supports clients on five continents from six sales and support offices worldwide. Visit www.i2cinc.com for more information.