Once magnetic strip was innovative. Flatbed imprinting machines recorded the card information on carbon paper packets. Checking if a card was dodgy meant comparing the card against a list of customers' cards.

Magnetic strips were invented in the early 1960s by IBM, the magnetic stripe allowed banks to encode card information onto magnetic tape laminated to the back. It paved the way for electronic payment terminals and chip cards, offering more security and real-time authorization while making it easier for businesses of all sizes to accept cards.

The shift away from the magnetic stripe points to both consumers changing habits for payments and the development of newer technologies. Today's chip cards are powered by microprocessors that are much more capable and secure, and many are also embedded with antennae that enable contactless transactions.

Based on the decline in payments powered by magnetic stripes after chip-based payments took hold, newly issued Mastercard credit and debit cards will not be required to have a stripe starting in 2024 in most markets. By 2033, no Mastercard credit and debit cards will have magnetic stripes, which leaves a long runway for the remaining partners who still rely on the technology to phase in chip card processing.