Tourists preparing for a trip to Syria may soon notice a meaningful upgrade in one of travel’s most practical details: how you pay. QNB Group and Mastercard have announced an expansion of Mastercard payment services in Syria, a step aimed at widening access to modern digital transactions and strengthening the country’s payment infrastructure.
The announcement centers on QNB being granted a Mastercard license to extend both “issuing” and “acquiring” activities in Syria. For travelers, this matters because it touches both sides of the payment experience. Issuing supports the rollout of Mastercard-based payment solutions for individuals and businesses, while acquiring supports the systems that allow merchants—such as hotels, restaurants, shops, and service providers—to accept Mastercard payments through point-of-sale terminals and related channels. The broader goal is to expand access to seamless and secure digital transactions, locally and internationally.
For visitors, the real value is simple: less friction during your tour. If merchant acceptance grows, tourists could find it easier to pay for hotel stays, restaurant bills, transportation services, and larger purchases without constantly carrying large amounts of cash. It also helps with budgeting: card transactions are easier to track than multiple cash exchanges, and they can reduce the stress of finding reliable exchange points during a fast-moving itinerary across several cities.
This development also follows a memorandum of understanding previously signed between Mastercard and the Central Bank of Syria to support modernization of the country’s digital payments infrastructure—signaling an ongoing push toward more structured, technology-driven payment networks.
A realistic traveler’s note: these upgrades usually roll out gradually. Card acceptance can still differ widely from one place to another, so it’s smart to keep a cash backup, confirm with your bank that your card is enabled for international use, and ask your hotel or tour operator what payment methods are commonly accepted where you’re going.
Sources:
https://qnb.com/sites/qnb/qnbglobal/en/05012026news qnb.com
https://financialit.net/news/payments/qnb-and-mastercard-expand-payment-services-syria