HSBC selects Visa as exclusive brand partner for new consumer debit cards in 20 countries, launches first contactless Visa payWave-enabled debit card in the Middle East Visa Inc. and HSBC announced on Thursday that the companies have expanded their global relationship to include new debit card programs in a number of countries and territories throughout Asia Pacific and the Middle East. The five-year regional agreements represent an expansion of HSBC's current credit card issuing relationship with Visa and are the latest milestones in Visa's efforts to combine its global brand and payments expertise with strong local marketplace knowledge and execution to help clients grow their business. HSBC Middle East Limited will begin issuing new Visa-branded debit cards by early 2009 in eight countries including United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Pakistan. Some of these approximately one million new cards will also be Visa payWave-enabled, allowing cardholders to make contactless payment transactions quickly and securely at the point of sale. The Visa payWave-enabled debit cards will also be able to support services such as loyalty programs for cardholders, bringing more convenience and added value to debit transactions. “The introduction of a region-wide HSBC Visa debit chip card is further evidence of HSBC's commitment to delivering innovative products to market and enhancing customers' banking experience. We are delighted to launch a product in association with Visa that offers our customers convenience and flexibility, enabling them to use their cards at the point of sale and at the ATMs,” said Abdulfattah Sharaf, CEO, Personal Financial Services, HSBC Middle East. Under terms of the agreement for Asia Pacific, Visa will become HSBC's exclusive partner for new consumer debit products, with HSBC issuing more than 10 million Visa debit cards in Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. Currently, there are approximately 847 million Visa Inc. debit cards globally; representing more than $2.1 trillion in total volume, for the 12 months ended June 30, 2008. __
