Mastercard has joined the likes of Nike, Apple and McDonald’s and unveiled its new corporate logo that relies purely on an image and no words.

The global credit card company has dropped the word Mastercard and instead will rely simply on the brand’s famous red and orange balls to get its identity across.

According to the brand, the decision to go sans words was based on internal research that showed “more than 80 per cent of people” recognised the symbol without the brand name.

Mastercard’s previous logo:

It said in statement, the company said that the “flexible, modern design” will allow the logo to work  better across digital media, whatever that may mean.

“Reinvention in the digital age calls for modern simplicity,” said the company CMO Raja Rajamannar, who “felt ready to take this next step in our brand evolution”.

“We are proud of our rich brand heritage and are excited to see the iconic circles standing on their own,” Rajamannar said.

The interlocking balls have been part of the brand’s identity for the past 50 years, way back when it was known as Interbank before it changed its name to Master Charge and later Mastercard.