Dubai: Apart from banks, payment services using the UAE’s new ‘Jaywan’ platform will be available through e& UAE and du, the country’s telecom giants with a sizeable presence in online transactions through their digital wallets.
This means that payments using Jaywan can be done at physical stores and also online as the scheme gets ready for full rollout to residents in the UAE.
The actual start of Jaywan transactions is set for some time during Q4-2024. What's going to happen next will be for local banks to start issuing these debit cards to their customers.
Jaywan – which is owned by Al Etihad Payments and part of the UAE Central Bank – serves the purpose of the country having its own domestic card scheme and a viable, lower cost option to the global giants.
“We already have on-boarded 26 banks and telcos that we serve here in the UAE,” said Nandan Mer, CEO of Network International, the Dubai-headquartered payment network operator. “We're ready for all our bank, fintech and telco customers to start issuing Jaywan cards whenever they believe is the right time for them to do that. And we hope that issuance will commence soon now that we know that there is going to be universal acceptance of Jaywan across the UAE.”
Banks in the UAE have already gone through the process of having their ATMs work on Jaywan cards. Next, they will start issuing Jaywan cards to their retail customers. Each bank will have its own schedule of how fast they need to move in getting these debit cards to all of their customers.
(For Jaywan) prepaid and debit are absolutely the right places to start because that gives you the maximum reach from a consumer standpoint in any economy
As for Network International, it’s gone through the hard yards of getting all the merchants on its network tune their point-of-sale machines to process payments done through Jaywan.
The rollout, according to banking and retail industry sources, is proceeding smoothly. Mer can vouch for that from his side of the operations.
“Every new payment brand or domestic scheme needs acceptance,” said Mer. “We were first off the blocks in getting Jaywan certified at our point-of-sales and online services for merchants. We expect that that rollout of acceptance will be completed before the end of August.
“This is a very robust process, because it involves money movements from Point A to Point B, and like in any other exchange of value, you have to get this right every time in nanoseconds - securely, safely, and at speed and at scale.
“All that testing has taken place. And we're live in the market, both from an acquiring or an acceptance perspective as well as from an issuance perspective.
How will Jaywan compare to its global rivals?
For the time being, Jaywan will only have a debit and prepaid card features. As far as UAE residents are concerned, the biggest draw in using the Jaywan would be the fees involved.
“For a consumer, there could be a significant difference - by saving 20 per cent, I’m essentially keeping Dh20 for every Dh100 I spend," said Sameera Fernandes, Director of Corporate Affairs at Century Financial. "And which adds up quickly.
Compared to a typical 10 per cent cashback one gets from a good debit card, the savings with Jaywan can be double
“Compared to a typical 10 per cent cashback one gets from a good debit card, the savings with Jaywan can be double. This makes a noticeable impact on a UAE consumer’s budget, allowing for making the most out of every dirham spent.
“What really will set Jaywan apart is how much more the cardholder can get compared to other debit cards. The rewards and loyalty programs are tailored for the UAE market, offering real value that you actually notice in your day-to-day spending.”
