Azericard looks to expand innovative payment tools in Azerbaijan

By Trend

Azericard Processing Center plans to expand innovative tools for making payments in Azerbaijan, the center’s Director General Farid Guliyev said on Dec. 8 at the 5th International Banking Forum in Baku, Trend reports.

"Currently, Azericard's network consists of more than 30,000 POS-terminals and 1,600 ATMs. Payments with cards of MasterCard [served by the processing center] have grown by 40 percent since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and accelerated the digitalization process for seven years ahead. We also ensure the safety of partner banks with making payments," Guliyev noted.

According to him, those areas in which non-cash payments weren’t conducted before the pandemic were immediately digitalized [after its outbreak].

"Our processing center, in partnership with Azerbaijani banks, provides them with all the necessary tools to expand non-cash payments and digitalize products. Consequently, we plan to implement a project, within which citizens will be able to make payments without the use of a physical card," the CEO also said.

"To date, 3.7 million contactless cards have been registered on our platform. Our activities fully provide the banks of the country with the solutions they need - both in the field of financial technology and in ensuring security. We are providing services to 16 banks in the country and intend to expand this indicator in the future," added Guliyev.