MasterCard has opened its official East African regional headquarters in Kenya.

The new location will act as a connection office for customer banks, business associates and consumers in its main markets of Kenya, Tanzania, Mauritius, Ethiopia and Uganda, as well as across the rest of the East African region.

The office will focus on areas such as card knowledge, card acceptance infrastructure, developing new products and partnerships with 'technology enablers,' as well as retailer education and best acceptance practice.

In addition, MasterCard will also provide its East African consumers with MasterCard Advisors services. MasterCard Advisors offers payments consulting, information, analytics and customised services to financial institutions, governments and retailers worldwide.

MasterCard has already been active in the Kenyan market working with banks and other business organisations to provide its support on developing payment services for Kenyans.

Most recently, MasterCard has inked a new multi-year contract with US financial services company KeyBank to offer the latter debit payment services and processing capabilities.