NPCI Int'l to develop UAE's domestic card scheme in partnership deal

Scheme will help UAE in financial inclusion, strengthening e-commerce and digital transactions

India’s NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL) will assist in developing the first national domestic card scheme (DCS) for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as part of a strategic partnership.

NIPL has signed a partnership agreement with Al Etihad Payments (AEP), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE).

Scheduled to launch in early 2024, the DCS will help UAE in improving financial inclusion, strengthening e-commerce and digital transactions and enhancing the country’s position as a global digital payments leader.

As part of its Financial Infrastructure Transformation (FIT) programme, CBUAE’s launch of AEP aims to implement an innovative, interoperable, and enabling payments infrastructure allowing licensed financial institutions and payment service providers to further enhance customer experience through advanced payment solutions.

NIPL was commissioned for this initiative following a comprehensive selection process that gauged the capacity of its solution in meeting the needs of consumers and merchants, in addition to its ability to build an integrated financial infrastructure. NIPL will operate the DCS and provide fraud monitoring and data analysis support.

“The FIT programme, as well as the signing of this agreement, underscores CBUAE’s commitment to accelerating the digital transformation of the financial sector and bolstering digital payments, in line with the ambitions of the UAE’s leadership. The development of the DCS is an integral FIT initiative and an achievement in the payments space which seeks to support the growth of digital transactions and e-commerce whilst ensuring business continuity,” said Khaled Mohamed Balama, governor of CBUAE.

The agreement was signed between Saif Humaid Al Dhaheri, assistant governor – Strategy, Financial Infrastructure and Digital Transformation at CBUAE and chairman of AEP, and Dilip Asbe, managing director and chief executive officer of NPCI, representing NPCI International Payments.

“We are pleased to collaborate further with our counterparts in India and are confident that we have chosen the ideal partners to accomplish this venture with. We also look forward to establishing an innovation fund that will look to support the payment systems of India and the UAE, drive R&D, and foster the capabilities of UAE citizens to ensure their effective management of the DCS,” said Dhaheri.

“We are pleased to announce our collaboration with the Central Bank of the UAE and Al Etihad Payments. Together, we will work on building, implementing, and operationalising the UAE's National Domestic Card Scheme. This partnership aligns perfectly with NIPL's global mission to offer our knowledge and expertise to assist other countries in establishing their own cost effective and secure payment services,” said Ritesh Shukla, CEO, NIPL.