Standard Bank’s innovation and new business division business development manager of Beyond Payments Mike Hughes said that the new offering is an integration of the transit ticket inside a banking card – secured with bank-strength security – along with a payment wallet.
"We are looking to extend EMV contactless payments to a number of different market sectors including events, schools and university campuses, as well as toll roads and other players in the transport sector," Hughes added.
Compliant with standards of the National Department of Transport (NDoT), around 100,000 cards have already been procured by the Ethekwini Municipality to improve ticketless payments for its public transport system in the coastal city of Durban.
Gemalto senior vice president Gabrielle Bugat commented, "We’ll accompany Standard Bank in making financial services more accessible to the underserved population by using transport as a stepping stone."
As part of the partnership between the firms, Gemalto will provide related data preparation and personalization services to the new card along with the ongoing service offered for its portfolio of debit and credit cards.
With annual revenues of €2bn as of 2011, Gemalto manages more than 10,000 employees in 74 offices and 14 Research & Development centers, located in 43 countries.
