BP vs Mastercard: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: BP and Mastercard side by side

1. 1901BP

   D'Arcy Persian Concession

   William Knox D'Arcy obtains a 60-year oil concession from the Shah of Persia covering about 480,000 square miles, roughly three-quarters of the country, in exchange for £20,000 in cash, £20,000 in shares and 16% of annual profits.

2. 1908BP

   Discovery of Oil at Masjid-i-Suleiman

   After seven years of expensive and largely unsuccessful drilling, field manager George Reynolds strikes oil at Masjid-i-Suleiman in south-west Persia on May 26, 1908. It is the first commercial oil discovery in the Middle East.

3. 1909BP

   Anglo-Persian Oil Company Incorporated

   The Anglo-Persian Oil Company is formally incorporated in April 1909, with William Knox D'Arcy and the Burmah Oil Company as principal backers.

4. 1914BP

   British Government Acquires 51% Stake

   At the urging of Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, the British government pays ~$2.9 million (£2.2 million) for a 51% stake in Anglo-Persian and signs a long-term fuel-oil supply contract for the Royal Navy, which is converting its fleet from coa…

5. 1954BP

   Renamed British Petroleum

   Following the 1953 resolution of the Iranian nationalization crisis and the Shah's restoration to power, the company renames itself British Petroleum Company.

6. 1966Mastercard

   Interbank Card Association Takes Shape

   A group of U.S. Banks formed the Interbank Card Association to make card acceptance work across institutions rather than inside isolated bank programs.

7. 1968Mastercard

   Master Charge Brand Adopted

   The association adopted the Master Charge name and interlocking-circle design to give member banks a stronger shared identity. A common brand made the network easier for merchants and consumers to recognize as acceptance expanded beyond local bank programs.

8. 1970BP

   North Sea Forties Field Discovery

   BP discovers the Forties field in the UK North Sea, one of the largest oil fields ever found in British waters. Together with Alaska's Prudhoe Bay, it gives BP politically secure production just as Middle Eastern governments take control of their oil.

9. 1979Mastercard

   Master Charge Becomes MasterCard

   The network changed its name from Master Charge to MasterCard as it became more international. The rebrand simplified recognition and helped the company present itself as a global acceptance network rather than a domestic bank-card association.

10. 1987BP

    UK Government Privatization Complete

    The Thatcher government completes the privatization of its remaining 31.5% stake in BP through a global share offering timed for October 1987 weeks before the global stock market crash known as Black Monday disrupted the sale and left underwriters with unsold…

11. 1998BP

    Merger with Amoco Corporation

    BP merges with Chicago-based Amoco Corporation in a deal valued at approximately $48.2 billion the largest industrial merger in history at the time.

12. 2000BP

    Beyond Petroleum Rebrand

    Under then-CEO Sir John Browne, BP launches the 'Beyond Petroleum' rebranding campaign, introducing the sunflower logo still in use today and publicly positioning the company as an energy company committed to addressing climate change.

13. 2002Mastercard

    Europay Merger and Corporate Conversion

    MasterCard merged with Europay International and converted from a membership association into a private share corporation. That structure prepared the company for public-market ownership and a more independent investment agenda.

14. 2006Mastercard

    Initial Public Offering on the NYSE

    MasterCard priced its initial public offering at $39 per share and listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MA.

15. 2010BP

    Deepwater Horizon Disaster

    The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, operating on the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico under contract to BP, suffers a catastrophic blowout on April 20, 2010, killing 11 workers and triggering the largest marine oil spill in US history approximately 4.9 milli…

16. 2017Mastercard

    Vocalink Expands Real-Time Payments

    Mastercard completed its Vocalink acquisition after announcing a deal for 92.4 percent of the U.K. Payments infrastructure company for about $920 million.

17. 2020BP

    Net-Zero Commitment and Dividend Cut

    Under new CEO Bernard Looney, BP sets a net-zero ambition for 2050 and, in August 2020, pledges to cut oil and gas production by 40% by 2030 and raise low-carbon investment to about $5 billion a year.

18. 2020Mastercard

    Finicity Strengthens Open Banking

    Mastercard completed the acquisition of Finicity, a North American financial data and open banking platform. The deal added consumer-permissioned data connectivity for lending, account verification, personal finance, and account-based payment use cases.

19. 2021Mastercard

    Michael Miebach Becomes CEO

    Michael Miebach became chief executive officer on January 1, 2021 after serving as chief product officer and president.

20. 2021Mastercard

    Nets Account-to-Account Business Closes

    Mastercard completed the acquisition of the majority of Nets' Corporate Services business, adding clearing and settlement instant payment infrastructure, bill payment, and e-invoicing capabilities.

21. 2024BP

    Auchincloss Confirmed as CEO

    Murray Auchincloss, BP's CFO since 2020 and interim chief since Bernard Looney's September 2023 exit, is confirmed as permanent CEO in January 2024.

22. 2024Mastercard

    Recorded Future Adds Threat Intelligence

    Mastercard completed the acquisition of Recorded Future, adding AI-enabled threat intelligence to its cybersecurity, identity, and real-time fraud scoring services.

23. 2025BP

    Strategy Reset and Bumerangue Discovery

    In February 2025 BP cuts planned transition investment to $1.5-2 billion a year, raises upstream spending to about $10 billion a year and targets $20 billion of divestments and $14-18 billion of net debt by 2027.

24. 2025BP

    CEO Change and Castrol Sale Agreed

    On December 17, 2025 BP says Murray Auchincloss will step down and names Woodside Energy CEO Meg O'Neill as his successor from April 2026, with Carol Howle as interim CEO.

25. 2025Mastercard

    $32.8B FY2025 Net Revenue

    Mastercard reported $32.791 billion in FY2025 net revenue and $14.968 billion in net income.

26. 2026BP

    O'Neill Takes Over and Simplifies BP

    Meg O'Neill becomes CEO on April 1, 2026. The board removes chair Albert Manifold on May 26 over governance and conduct concerns and names Ian Tyler interim chair, confirming him as permanent chair on September 2.

27. 2026Mastercard

    BVNK Adds Stablecoin Infrastructure

    Mastercard closed its acquisition of stablecoin infrastructure firm BVNK on August 3, 2026, for up to $1.8 billion including contingent payments. The deal extends the company's network to on-chain payments alongside cards and bank transfers.

Acquisitions

Questions about BP vs Mastercard