OREANDA-NEWS. At The Sixth Meeting of the UnionPay International Member Council held in the capital of the People's Republic of China (Beijing), UnionPay International Co., Ltd and JSC Halyk Bank (Halyk Bank) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU was signed by Mr. Cai Jianbo, UnionPay International, CEO, and Mrs. Umut Shayakhmetova, CEO of Halyk Bank.

The MOU involves certain specific steps aimed at implementing joint projects and deepening of cooperation of the flagship of Kazakhstan's financial system and the global largest international payment system, namely: development of scholarship programs for Kazakhstan’s students who are studying or going to study in China; development and diversification of products and services UnionPay and Halyk Bank: corporate cards, Diamond premium cards, innovative products supporting money transfers (P2P), online payments and e-commerce; expanding the presence in the International Cross-Border Cooperation Center ‘Khorgos’ (ICBCC ‘Khorgos’); participation in the ‘EXPO-2017’ (Astana).

The Sixth Meeting of UnionPay International Member Council takes place from 27 to 29 May 2015. Mrs. Umut Shayakhmetova, JSC Halyk Bank CEO, is a Member of the UnionPay International Member Council, representing Far Eastern Europe and Central Asia (Russia, Belarus, Ukraine) since November 2012. Halyk Bank is the sole financial institution in the region participating in the UnionPay International Member Council.

Cooperation of Halyk Bank and China UnionPay (parent company UPI), which is the largest card processing company, started in 2006, when the partners signed the acquiring agreement.

Deepening of partnership took place in December 2012 in Shanghai at the official presentation of UnionPay International (UPI), the international division of the payment system China UnionPay (CUP), where Halyk Bank was admitted as a member of UnionPay International Member Council, the collegial body with specific powers in the management of payment system.

In November 2014, Kazakhstan has launched a joint project of Halyk Bank and UnionPay International (UPI, China) for the production of unique co-branded payment cards - Altyn UnionPay and Altyn UnionPay Gold.

UnionPay International (UPI) – international division dedicated to UnionPay global operations development and support, it is founded by China UnionPay (pinyin: Zh?nggu? Y?nli?n, CUP) - China's payment system founded in 2002 by leading banks of the country. The system was established by of the State Council and the People's Bank of China. After two years, the company has already commenced operating outside China, and to date, it operates in 150 countries worldwide. The company ranks first in issuing plastic cards globally.

JSC Halyk Bank is the leading financial services group and the leading retail bank in Kazakhstan with the largest customer base and the broadest branch network. The Bank has been developing as a universal financial services group rendering a wide range of services (banking services, brokerage, insurance, leasing, and asset management) to its retail, SME and corporate clients. The Bank also operates in Russia, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan.