MasterCard and CB Bank have
launched their first payment product in the country – a prepaid travel card for
locals called the CB Bank EASI Travel Prepaid MasterCard card.
The reloadable prepaid card will
be made available to Myanmar
residents for when they travel outside of the country. It is the first such
card product to be launched in Myanmar
and is yet another stage in the evolution of the electronic payments ecosystem.
MasterCard has been working very
closely to enable CB Bank (which it licensed in September last year) to roll
out its very first prepaid MasterCard card. CB Bank is already certified and
has undergone full system testing as part of its efforts to be connected to the
global payments network.
Mr. Kyaw Lynn, Executive Vice
Chairman and CEO of CB Bank said, “CB Bank continues to be first in the
electronic payments sector in Myanmar
and we are pleased to be able to collaborate with MasterCard to launch this
travel prepaid card. Just as our country is opening up to the world, at the
same time, the world is opening up to our countrymen and we’re seeing more and
more locals travel abroad. We are so glad to introduce this travel prepaid
MasterCard card to help make their travels safe and hassle-free without the
worries of carrying large amounts of cash.”
Matthew Driver, president, Southeast Asia,
MasterCard, added, “Part of the allure of operating in such a frontier market
is in seeing the vital steps of financial inclusion play out: a vast majority
of people in Myanmar remain unbanked and don’t have access to financial
services. But the payments infrastructure is rapidly developing – from the
rollout of ATMs, point-of-sale terminals, and now the introduction of prepaid
cards. This presents an alternative option for the growing number of locals
who’ve had to carry wads of cash when they leave the country for business or
leisure travel. It offers them a safe and secure payment method while abroad.”
Overall consumer optimism is at
an extreme high in Myanmar
(96.0 Index points according to the latest MasterCard Index of Consumer Confidence). According to the
MasterCard survey of Consumer Purchasing Priorities, nearly two-thirds of
people who have traveled abroad intend to do so again within the next 12
months, making the introduction of a prepaid travel card timely for the market.
“Part of our financial inclusion
strategy in Myanmar
is to educate the local population about the value of electronic payments – we
would like to help them understand the benefits of doing away with cash,”
Driver added.
The launch of a new prepaid card
marks another vital step forward in the country’s reform of its banking and
financial system. MasterCard was one of the first international payments networks
to issue a license to a Myanmar bank in September last year, paving the way
international payment cards to be accepted in the country for the first time.
In November, MasterCard and Co-operative Bank Ltd (CB Bank) teamed up to launch
the first ATM transaction at one of the bank’s Yangon ATMs.
It is expected that more than 500
restaurants, retail outlets and hotels in Myanmar will be accepting payment
cards by the end of the year, following the rollout of Point-of-Sale (POS)
terminals in March this year with CB Bank.
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