MA MasterCard Incorporated

By Maitane Sardon

Mastercard Inc. (MA) said Friday that it is launching a coalition with other corporate partners to make investments into sustainable projects, as part as its goal to help tackle climate change.

The initiative, called the Priceless Planet Coalition, was founded in collaboration with Citigroup Inc.'s (C) subsidiary Citibank, Santander U.K., IHS Markit Ltd. (INFO), Saks Fifth Avenue, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority and American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) among others, and plans to plant 100 million trees over the next five years.

Reforestation programs are an effective way to fight climate change, according to the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Limiting the rise in average temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2030 will require an extra 1 billion hectares of trees, the IPCC said in a report.

"No matter who you are or what you do, climate change affects you. But it has the biggest negative impact on those who are socially and economically vulnerable," said Ajay Banga, president and chief executive officer of Mastercard. "Our best chance at changing the course we're on and setting us all up for better futures is for companies and consumers to pull in the same direction towards a shared goal."

Write to Maitane Sardon at maitane.sardon@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 17, 2020 09:31 ET (14:31 GMT)

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