Prepaid Summit: Middle East 2011
Conference, Expo and Networking Dinner, with pre-conference Workshop
March 22-23 2011
Westin Hotel, Dubai
www.vrl-financial-news.com
Dubai UAE February 8 2011: Prepaid comprises up to 40 per cent of the new payment products developed by Network International over the last three years, according to Samer Soliman, vice president and head of processing at Network International.
"Demand for prepaid channels will continue to surge and product development will be driven by innovation and creativity. Banks and institutions are already realising this and are fast opening dialogue looking to us to help create products and solutions that compliment their current business, as well as a new audience" said Soliman.
Soliman was speaking ahead of the second regional Prepaid Summit: Middle East 2011 in Dubai organised by VRL Financial News. Network International is a Silver Sponsor at the event (March 22-23 2011.)
His sentiments were echoed by Gups Jutla, eCommerce and Prepaid Manager for Visa: "Prepaid is an emerging and innovative payment growth opportunity that can generate significant incremental economic and strategic benefit for customers. Over the past six years, Visa has witnessed exceptional growth in the prepaid segment, and is Visa's fastest growing product. As of 2009, the total prepaid segment in the GCC looks ready to be valued at $188 billion by 2012.
"While prepaid cards offer many of the same benefits as debit cards, they are also an empowering tool to allow consumers without a traditional banking relationship to benefit from the advantages of electronic payments. In addition, due to the fact that prepaid products draw funds from a pre-funded account, which means customers essentially, 'pay before', prepaid is an effective financial literacy tool as you only spend what you have", he added.
James Ratcliff, spokesperson for VRL Financial News reaffirmed the relevance of prepaid networking in the Middle East "The Prepaid Summit Middle East 2011 will bring focus on the players who value innovation as they will create the winning products in an increasingly competitive market," he said.
The 2011 Summit will focus on emerging opportunities in the region such as prepaid cards issued by Islamic banks and the perspective of the broader Asia Pacific, including the Indian subcontinent.
The 2011 Middle East Summit on March 22 and 23 will be a networking platform for more than 150 experts. The summit highlights will include exclusive research on the markets and the views of more than 35 speakers. Visa is on-board again as summit Title Sponsor. Epay is the Gold sponsor for the summit and Network International LLC as the Silver Sponsor.
-Ends-
About VRL Financial NewsFor over 20 years, VRL has been delivering a unique series of conferences and events to the financial services market. Sponsored by the major players in the industry, VRL conferences deliver focused and original content, with innovative first-time speakers and provocative sessions, exclusive research and a rich mix of delegates.
With major international conferences on the agenda in 2011, each of which is a red letter date in the diaries of the world's top financial players, the learning and networking opportunities of joining with VRL are second-to-none. More information available on www.vrl-financial-news.com
About VISA
Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency. Underpinning digital currency is one of the world's most advanced processing networks--VisaNet--that is capable of handling more than 10,000 transactions a second, with fraud protection for consumers and guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank, and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: Pay now with debit, ahead of time with prepaid or later with credit products.
For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com
About Network International LLC
Established in 1994, Network International LLC is the largest acquirer and one of the leading payment solutions providers in the Region geared to meet the needs of Banks, Financial institutions and large and individual retailers. It is a Principal Member of Visa International and MasterCard International for the UAE, offering customers the most comprehensive range of payment products and services in the Gulf and MENA region, for both the Issuing and Acquiring segment of the card payment industry. Offerings include credit and debit card processing services, ATM management and monitoring, merchant acquiring plus consumer finance applications. Network International provides consultancy services ranging from planning and designing, to developing of new card and consumer finance products and services.
Network International is the first independent vendor certified by both Visa & MasterCard for card payments in the Middle East. It is the UAE's largest payment acquirer for Credit & Debit Cards and the largest third-party processing vendor which is capable of providing banks, the retail industry and financial institutions with complete EMV certified solutions as they migrate to EMV Smart Card technology. For more information please visit www.network.ae
Media Contacts:
Anu Bhatnagar
Strategic Solutions for VRL
Email: anu@strategicsolutionsonline.com,
Tel: 9714 390 30 30
Mobile: 97150 72 86 803
© Press Release 2011
