UAE-based Emirates NBD has rolled out its mobile contactless payments solution that enables the bank's Visa cardholders to pay for in-store purchases instantly using their mobile phones.
Based on NFC technology, the app, Emirates NBD Pay, allows Android mobile devices to make purchases at NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminals.
The bank claims that the new mobile contactless payments solution is the first in the Central Europe, Middle East and Africa region (CEMEA) to incorporate Visa's Token Service technology.
Visa's Token service replaces cardholder information such as account numbers and expiry dates with a unique digital identifier, or token that can be used for payment without exposing a cardholder's personal account information.
Upon initiating the payment process, the customers simply has to wave their smartphones near the terminal to complete the transaction immediately.
Emirates NBD senior executive vice president and group head of retail banking and wealth management Suvo Sarkar said: “By being the first bank in CEMEA to sign up for Visa's Digital Enablement Program in 2015, we have succeeded in launching Emirates NBD Pay in a short time frame.
“The service solidifies our commitment to adopting global best practices and introducing next generation banking solutions to the region.
“With total convenience and security being offered to our customers, we believe Emirates NBD cards will continue to be the preferred payment option for the market at large."
