OREANDA-NEWS. August 7, 2012. Raiffeisen Bank Aval completed the MasterCard certification process for acquiring of PayPass contactless payments. The unique technology of contactless payments becomes even more accessible for the Ukrainians due to expansion of the card receiving network.

Raiffeisen Bank Aval, one of the largest Ukrainian banks, now serves PayPass payments. Thus, it will be possible to assess the comfort, speed and safety of contactless payments in even more trade and service points. Owing to task-oriented work of acquiring banks, PayPass cards are now accepted by almost 1,500 trading outlets, and 7,000 terminals have been already installed with 8% coverage.

"We are happy that our technology of PayPass contactless electronic payments, which provides real preferences to all participants of the market, is being actively developed. Jointly with our partners, we do our best for this. The use of PayPass cards is the most efficient in the spheres, where the speed of transactions and the reliability of payment instruments are critical. For example, in trade networks with larger flows of purchasers the number of clients served per time unit will surely increase. Regarding banks, this MasterCard product allows to differentiate among competitors, demonstrate their leadership in innovations and increase the number of contactless payments becoming even more popular in Ukraine. According to the National Bank of Ukraine, in 2011 the number of contactless payments increased almost twice as much as in 2010 and continues growing rapidly. The results of acquiring banks in installation of specialized terminals for PayPass contactless payments are impressive. Today one can use these cards for payments in different spheres: in the largest retail chains of the country, such as METRO Cash&Carry, “Silpo”, ATB, Novus, MegaMarket, Arsen, Obzhora, Varus, etc.; footwear and other shops, such as INTERTOP, MOYO, Poliana; in a number of entertainment chains and cafes, for instance, the Butterfly cinema, MaxFoxy fast-food network and the like. The potential of the Ukrainian market is huge, the number of application spheres is great. So, we believe that the PayPass card will be the number one card for each citizen of Ukraine", noted Pavel Rikhlinski, General Manager of MasterCard Europe in Ukraine, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and in the Balkans.

“It’s a great honor for Raiffeisen Bank Aval to make the history of the contactless payment market of Ukraine as one of the first banks. The successful launch of this project has once again confirmed that the bank is a leader in the merchant acquiring sector and is constantly working to improve its services. Thanks to the coordinated work of all banks’ structural divisions, we managed to finish all the necessary updates, as we were planned, to get started with MasterCard PayPass. Also, I want to note that the first stage of the technology implementation will be held in conjunction with the banks’ strategic clients, which will make it possible to organize a network of receiving contactless payments throughout the whole territory of Ukraine before the end of the third quarter of 2012. We believe that the proliferation of MasterCard PayPass contactless payment technology will provide greater opportunities for increasing non-cash payments in Ukraine, making them faster and more convenient for cardholders and merchants”, said Robert Kossmann, Deputy Chairman of Raiffeisen Bank Aval.

MasterCard PayPass is an innovative payment instrument, which permits to make contactless payments with one hand move. In order to make a payment with a PayPass card, you should simply put your card close to a terminal or a scanning device. You do not need to pass your card to other person, what provides the maximal degree of protection and control over transactions. Besides, the PayPass card protection system foresees availability of a microchip and an antenna, which transmit cardholder’s data via a special trade terminal and almost instantly confirm the transaction with the bank. A PayPass card may be used for payment of purchases to any sum. In order to increase the speed and comfort of transactions for cardholders, neither signature, nor PIN insertion is required in case the amount of purchase does not exceed UAH 100. The PayPass technology may be realized in various form-factors, such as: a classic card, a watch, a bibelot, or a card-sticker, which can be easily stuck to any appropriate surface, say, to a telephone.

PayPass in the world

Introduction of the PayPass technology in the world started in 2004, when contactless payment terminals appeared in Canada, USA, Japan and in the Philippines. As at Q1 2012, there were above 100,000,000 cards and PayPass devices produced, which may be used in more than 425,000 points of sales throughout the world, including even such new spheres of contactless payments as trade automates, taxis, passing points on paid highways and so on. Today, in Europe the PayPass technology is most actively introduced by banks in Great Britain, France, Poland, Russia, Germany and Turkey. Ukraine is the 38th in the list of countries that have introduced PayPass. Both the card receiving network and the card emission are developing very fast.