by Alvyn Ulrish Shad Savrimuthu
MCB has unveiled Juice 5.0, the latest upgrade of its flagship mobile banking application, reinforcing its status as a cornerstone of digital finance in Mauritius. With over 650,000 users, Juice has become more than a payment app – it is now part of daily Mauritian life, known widely through the phrase “Juice mwa.” The new version delivers a refreshed design, a simplified user experience, enhanced security, and the introduction of Juice Tap, a feature that allows Mastercard debit and credit card holders to pay by simply tapping their phone on contactless terminals both locally and abroad.
The launch of Juice 5.0 signals a decisive step in the evolution of digital payments on the island, strengthening MCB’s innovation drive while deepening its collaboration with Mastercard to bring world-class financial technologies to Mauritius.
A Refreshed Experience and New Features
From MCB’s perspective, the upgrade is about more than new features – it’s about aligning with user expectations for simplicity, flexibility, and security. Speaking to Platform Africa, Stéphanie Ng Tseung, Head of Payments at MCB, explained: “Today we’re super happy to unveil the new Juice application, which comes with a refreshed look and feel, different user experience, and even more simplicity and fluidity.”
Among the headline improvements is a dramatic increase in the daily transfer limit. “The possibility of increasing your daily funds transfer limit, which is currently at 50,000 rupees, to up to 3 million rupees, together with a security feature, identity proofing, makes Juice even more powerful because you will be able to do more transactions, more transfers,” she said.
Stéphanie also highlighted the internationalisation of the app through its new partnership with Mastercard: “One key feature I’m super happy and very proud to announce is the introduction of Juice Tap for our Mastercard card holders. Whether you’re a debit card holder or a credit card holder, you can now digitalize and tokenize your Mastercard in the Juice wallet and use your phone to tap to pay at over 30 million outlets in Mauritius and abroad.”
Mastercard’s Role in Transforming Payments
For Shehryar Ali, Senior Vice President and Country Manager for East Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands at Mastercard, the launch of Juice 5.0 represents a turning point for how Mauritians will engage with payments. “Juice app is going to change the way in which Mauritians actually transact both in Mauritius and abroad,” he told Platform Africa.
He stressed the speed and ease that Juice Tap introduces: “Today if you go to a till and you have to type your way through a transaction and take two or three minutes, that’s all history. Now you will simply take your Juice app on your phone and tap the phone on an NFC-enabled machine in all merchants in Mauritius.”
Beyond convenience, Mastercard has brought cutting-edge tokenisation technology into the ecosystem, ensuring higher security for both physical and online transactions. “A proxy is generated with every transaction. As soon as that transaction finishes, the token disappears, so your actual card stays safe. And if you are on subscription services like Netflix or Spotify, even if your card expires, you don’t need to update it – your token stays as is, and the transactions continue,” Shehryar explained.
This global reach was another strong message: “When you travel abroad, you don’t need anything else because you’ve got Mastercard technology available in more than 200 countries with more than 100 million merchants. All you need is the Juice app with MCB Juice 5.0.”
Driving Innovation and Digital Inclusion
Juice 5.0 is not just an upgrade – it is a reflection of the rapid evolution of financial technology in Mauritius. By embedding NFC payments, enhanced security, and flexible transfer options, MCB and Mastercard are positioning Mauritius at the forefront of Africa’s digital payment transformation.
As Stéphanie Ng Tseung summed it up: “From the start, simplicity and ease of use have been at the heart of Juice’s design. This is the strength we wanted to amplify with Juice 5.0.” Together with Mastercard’s global expertise, the app is now equipped to serve Mauritians at home and across borders – seamlessly, securely, and instantly.
