Citi has launched Mastercard's Smart Subscriptions tool in the UAE, marking the solution's global debut and its first deployment in the Middle East.
The feature has been introduced within the Citi Mobile App and allows Citi cardholders to view and manage recurring payments, including streaming services and meal delivery subscriptions, from a single interface. The UAE has been selected as the launch market for the solution worldwide, and Citi becomes the first bank in the Middle East to offer Mastercard's subscription management capability.
How the solution works
Smart Subscriptions connects banks, merchants, and consumers to give cardholders visibility over committed recurring spend directly through their existing banking channels. The underlying technology is powered by Ethoca, a Mastercard company that specialises in transaction data-sharing between merchants and issuers. Through the integration, Citi customers can identify subscription-based transactions linked to their card and access itemised digital receipts from participating merchants, alongside a clearer view of ongoing merchant billing relationships.
For issuers, Mastercard has stated that adoption of Smart Subscriptions has, on average, corresponded with a 10% increase in customer spend on subscriptions. For merchants, the solution is designed to lower chargebacks, support retention, and limit unnecessary payment stops caused by expired or declined cards.
Consumer demand in the UAE
The rollout is underpinned by research commissioned by Mastercard from Forrester Consulting earlier in 2026. According to the survey, 53% of UAE consumers said that difficulties managing subscriptions have led them to track their expenses more closely. In the meantime, 78% expressed interest in subscription management tools offered by their bank or card issuer, and 81% said they would trust their bank more if such tools were made available.
The same study found that 84% of UAE consumers would be more inclined to use a subscription management tool if it came from their bank or card issuer, while 83% said they would be motivated by the availability of straightforward, embedded cancellation options.
Strategic context
Rajeev Garg, UAE Head of Wealth at Citi, said the integration is intended to help customers manage recurring payments and better understand their merchant billing relationships as digital subscriptions become increasingly embedded in daily life across the UAE. Victor Nordenson, Executive Vice President and Global Account Management at Mastercard, described the UAE deployment as a way of addressing consumer demand locally while providing a model that could be extended to other markets where Citi operates.
The launch reflects a broader trend among banks to embed subscription and recurring-payment management within core banking applications, as regulators and consumers place greater emphasis on transparency over recurring charges. For Mastercard, the deployment extends the reach of its Ethoca-powered subscription management infrastructure into a new region, following prior rollouts with other issuers elsewhere.
