HSBC's business clients in UAE can now make 'virtual' card payments
UK bank says it's a regional first and comes with promise of enhanced security
Dubai: HSBC has introduced a ‘virtual’ debit card in the UAE, which the UK bank says is a first in the Middle East.
These cards, which operate on the Visa platform, generate single-use card numbers, or ‘tokens’, for each transaction. The payment is debited directly from the corporate cardholder’s current account.
Using Visa’s ‘Payables Automation’ platform, a card gets distributed electronically, protecting the primary card number.
“With increased demand for more flexible payment channels. HSBC is investing to create a bank fit for the future,” said Kailash Nair, Regional Head of Commercial Cards, Middle East North Africa and Turkey, HSBC. “Launching Virtual Debit Cards is a prime example of the bank’s digital upgrades in action, by which we are able to bring to our clients more choice in making B2B payments.”
The bank already issues 'virtual' credit cards.
