The Sharing Economy: 
                     Understanding the 
                     Opportunities for Growth 
                     For the past five years we have seen      What it forces is a reimagining of the 
                     the rise of a new trend enabled by        way we experience, own and buy.  If 
                     technology. This new trend moves us       society went from owning cars to 
                     beyond ownership into experience          sharing a car in the cloud that was 
                     powered by the ability to share. From     available only when needed there 
                     cars to houses, people around the         would be a fundamental shift across 
                     world are realising what they can         multiple industries, economies and 
                     experience without being encumbered       society.
                     by ownership. 
                                                               The currency in the sharing economy is 
                     This trend is facilitated by advances     not just the payment but also trust.
                     in technology. With the advent of the 
                     cloud and the move towards quantum 
                     computing we can experience more, 
                     faster and less expensively.
                                   As the world’s leading payments 
      About this report            technology company, Mastercard is 
                                   working to ensure that every one of 
                                   our products, solutions and services 
                                   is as digital as the people using them 
                                   around the world. We are designing rich, 
                                   innovative, compelling and secure ways 
                                   to pay and get paid across all channels 
                                   and devices, redefining commerce 
                                   globally. Our approach, combined with 
                                   advances in technology, enables us, 
                                   together with our partners, to create 
                                   deeper, more intelligent experiences to 
                                   enhance how people live, how businesses 
                                   grow, how cities function and how we 
                                   build trust in a digital world.
                                   Mastercard and The Future Agenda 
                                   undertook an investigation into the 
                                   current state and future perspective 
                                   of the sharing economy. The work 
                                   commenced in December 2016 and is 
                                   comprised of:
                                   • Desk research of available consumer  
                                     and market insights
                                   • Use of existing Future Agenda insights
                                   • Expert interviews
                                   • Mastercard workshop with key 
                                     stakeholders
                                                                                        “Facebook, the world’s most popular 
              The Current                                                               media owner, creates no content. 
                                                                                        Alibaba, the most valuable retailer, 
                                                                                        has no inventory. And Airbnb, the 
                                                                                        world’s largest accommodation 
              State of the                                                              provider, owns no real estate.” 
              Sharing Economy                                                           TechCrunch 
              There are many overlapping                             th
              definitions for the collaborative                 20  Century
              or sharing economy: here, we will                 Centralized, top-down 
              be talking about a socio-economic                 institutions                       st
              ecosystem that empowers people to                                               21  Century
              share underutilized assets directly 
              with others. (Source: The Sharing                                               Distributed, connected 
              Economy, Good Lab, 2016)                                                        communities
              It all started like an epiphenomenon, 
              but the collaborative economy has 
              become a deep socio-economic trend 
              that is fundamentally changing the 
              way we live our lives and it appears 
              to be here to stay. Why? Not only 
              because sharing is innate to humanity 
              but also because new technology                      Industrial Economy
              allows for new ways to share.
                                                                                              Collaborative Economy
              The sharing revolution
              Four Phases
               1       Connect to share 
                       information
               2       Connect people 
                       to each other
               3       Connect to share daily 
                       thoughts and media
                       Connect to access 
               4       and share assets
                       The growth of the sharing economy is         in six already using it. This familiarity and 
                       accelerating, now impacting many sectors     use increases in the younger population 
                       in many ways.                                to a one-in-three ratio amongst younger, 
                                                                    more highly educated, urban and working 
                       The European collaborative economy           people. Usage by category varies widely 
                       market – as defined by theses five sectors   though as only used goods, transport 
                       (accommodation, transportation, buying or    and accommodation have penetrated 
                       selling of goods, on-demand professional     beyond 20% in Europe. However, intention 
                       services and sharing or renting of goods) –  to participate in the sharing economy 
                       facilitated €27.9bn worth of transactions    is increasing, driven by a willingness to 
                       between May 2015 and May 2016, with an       make money but also to do good for the 
                       estimated 191m citizens engaging in at       environment and to build communities.
                       least one transaction involving payment. 
                       (Source: “Exploratory study of consumer      This is the rise of the Prosumer / 
                       issues in online peer-to-peer platform       Micropreneur: almost one third of people 
                       markets”, European Commission , 2017).       who have been on collaborative platforms 
                                                                    have already provided a service. That’s 
                       According to last year’s EC Eurobarometer,   more than 5% of the European population 
                       familiarity with the sharing economy is      already providing products and services 
                       increasing fast, with more than half of      through such platforms.
                       all Europeans knowing about it and one 
                                                        Accommodation
                                                         Transportation
                                                  Buying or selling of goods
                                             On-demand professional services
                                                 Sharing or renting of goods