After the ‘Jaywan’ debit card, there will also be a credit card option from the UAE’s newly launched payment platform.
When that’s done, it would mean a major step up for the Jaywan domestic card payment scheme, whether that’s for consumers or businesses in the UAE.
“We are in the final stages of defining what the Jaywan credit card scheme will be,” said Jan Pilbauer, CEO of Al Etihad Payments, which is part of the UAE Central Bank and with a mandate to develop the UAE’s own domestic payment options.
“Having already launched the Jaywan debit cards doesn’t mean it will make launching a domestic credit card scheme any easier. It’s not something many have done before.
“With any domestic payment card scheme, there are two sides to the equation one, to create the specifications for the card, which would be the technology on the chip, what’s the antenna that allows you to tap the card to make a payment.
“There’s another side to this that’s of acceptance. Once we have the cards in the market, we have to ensure people can go to every single ATM, every single merchant terminal, every single ecommerce gateway, and the transaction is done. Or if they want to load the Jaywan card onto their digital wallets, will it work smoothly.
“So, it’s not just creating and issuing a credit card we will need to build the ecosystem that wherever you go, there is a universal acceptance. It will also mean others too need to update their systems to allow the Jaywan credit cards in the future. It’s not just about the Al Etihad Payments introducing these cards to the market.”
When it comes to Jaywan debit cards, it all looks like smooth sailing. The banks in the UAE should soon be sending these to their customers. Existing payment networks and merchant terminals are all ready to process debit payments from the cardholders’ bank accounts once a transaction is done.
This has been quite the ambitious project by the UAE in creating its own domestic payment platform. The Jaywan debit card wasn’t about replicating what’s worked elsewhere, but about conceiving and executing a resilient payments network from scratch.
“We have been in a pilot testing phase since mid-2024,” said Pilbauer. “This included having the first issuers come out with some production cards, which meant it was working with ‘real money’.
“I don’t think we tweaked the processes on the Jaywan debit scheme. Because once the specifications are released and the debit cards are manufactured, any change from that point on means the issued cards will have to be replaced.
“That would add to the cost and we had to be very careful about that. The only tweaks have been on how the payments get routed, how that gets processed, and how the settlements happen.
“So, today, once you receive the Jaywan debit card, you can use it for any day-to-day purchase and it will work well.”
Visa and Mastercard alliances
UAE Jaywan debit card holders can also use these on their travels abroad. That’s been taken care of after Al Etihad Payments entered agreements with the likes of Visa and Mastercard.
There will be more coming too. There is a pilot program being worked on with Google Pay and Samsung Pay with ‘some merchants and first acquirers and that should roll out in the coming weeks’, said Pilbauer. “Apple Pay will be joining later.
“When it comes to e commerce payments, we are live in pilot testing with two local ecommerce gateways. Of course, we will add more.
“Everything is coming together, there is solid acceptance. We are waiting for the issuer banks to issue the Jaywan debit cards at scale – and also start replacing the existing cards that their UAE account holders have with the Jaywan.”
Source: gulfnews