Kenya Commercial Bank has teamed up with UnionPay International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China UnionPay, to launch a contactless debit card in Kenya.
Dubbed UnionPay Prepaid Travel Mate Card, the new chip and PIN-based card incorporates NFC technology to facilitate contactless transactions.
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The debit card will support fast, secure and convenient transaction in both large and small retailers, first in the Kenyan market and later in East Africa.
Additionally, the NFC debit cards will feature UnionPay contactless technology known as ‘Quickpass’ to provide speed and convenience to cardholders at major retailers and quick service merchants.
KCB Kenya head of Channels Dennis Njau said the partnership will enable customers to avail services with very little disruption to their schedules.
“We are constantly looking for new ways to offer our customers enhanced speed and convenience when it comes to payments through integrated services.”
The bank said that the programme will enable the digitalisation of payments at retailers, large and small, to take advantage of one of the world’s fastest payment processing networks.
UnionPay International CEO Cai Jianbo said: “With innovation at the heart of everything we do, it is our strategy to digitalize Payments in Africa and UnionPay has been working to fundamentally change the face of Electronic Payments in the Africa region.
“We are truly excited to be a part of the rollout of the first bank in Kenya to innovate with the UnionPay.”
