The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced the launch of tokenisation of payment cards on mobile applications, in line with its efforts to promote the adoption of e-payments in the country.
The apex bank has also announced enabling Apple Pay service in the first phase.
The tokenisation service was introduced in collaboration with the world’s leading digital payments providers VISA and Mastercard, the National Payment Scheme “Meeza,” and the smartphone manufacturer Apple Inc.
The launch was also coordinated with several banks, mobile payment application providers, and fintech companies, to facilitate the integration of international and local systems towards the expansion of the digital payment services reach in Egypt, as well as boosting customers’ trust in using electronic payments.
“Launching the payment card tokenisation service on mobile applications comes within the framework of the CBE’s keenness to stay abreast with the steadfast technological developments, and in continuation to the massive strides witnessed in the field of digital banking services in Egypt,” said Hassan Abdalla, Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt.
“Currently, Egyptian citizens are benefitting from these services, and they are able to conduct their financial transactions easily with a reasonable cost, at any time, and from anywhere,” he said.
Rami Aboulnaga, Deputy Governor of the CBE, said the new service highlights the CBE’s commitment to strengthening the infrastructure of digital financial services, and provide advanced and secured e-payments.
The National Cards Tokenisation Platform will avail a digital version of the electronic payment card on mobile applications, which will enable customers to perform contactless purchases through Point of Sale (POS) terminals or via e-commerce websites and applications.
The launch of the card tokenisation service is expected to drive substantial growth in transactions through both POS terminals and e-commerce applications, which have witnessed remarkable advancements over the past years.
By the end of 2024, the value of POS transactions is estimated to reach approximately EGP 640 billion, marking a growth rate of 280 per cent, compared to EGP 169 billion in 2021.
Similarly, the value of e-commerce transactions is expected to exceed EGP 180 billion by the end of 2024, compared to EGP 29 billion at the end of 2021, signifying a growth rate of over 500 per cent.
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