ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank starts servicing UnionPay cards

ArmInfo. As a result of cooperation of ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank with the Chinese UnionPay International, the start of servicing UnionPay cards in Armenia was launched. Now UnionPay card holders will have the opportunity to make  payments and cash out money through POS-terminals and ATMs of  ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank in Armenia. ArmInfo was informed about this  in the press service of the Bank.

Arsen Melkonyan, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of ACBA-Credit  Agricole Bank, said: "Today is a very significant day for us - we  have concluded an agreement thanks to which we will have the  opportunity to serve in Armenia cards of one of the fastest growing  payment systems in the world represented by UnionPay. Thus, Armenia  will become more convenient for tourists, because, according to all  forecasts, the volume of tourism in the country will increase every  year. " In this regard, he stressed that already this year quite a  serious growth was recorded, in particular, from the People's  Republic of China. According to A.  Melkonyan, the bank serves cards  of the largest payment systems in the world (Visa and MasterCard). He  expressed hope that ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank could prepare its  entire service network for acceptance of UnionPay cards in a short  time. "The agreement is also of strategic importance for us. It is a  great honor to be a partner of UnionPay in Armenia. We are confident  that we will achieve significant results very soon and our  cooperation will be fruitful," A. Melkonyan said.

In turn, Chairman of the Board of Directors of China UnionPay (CUP)  noted that he is glad to be in Armenia, of which he had heard a lot.  "Today we announce the start of cooperation. UnionPay is a rapidly  developing international payment system, and we want to transfer and  implement the experience gained over the years in Armenia. Our  partner in Armenia - ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank has a large network of  ATMs and POS-terminals, and works with international payment systems,  which will allow UnionPay cardholders to fully use their cards in  Armenia. I am also glad to note that in the future UnionPay mobile  payments will also be available in Armenia. " Vakhtang Abrahamyan,  Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia, noted  in his speech that the entry of UnionPay into the Armenian market is  a very important event. He expressed hope that thanks to cooperation  with UnionPay, new technologies will also enter Armenia. "I am sure  that this will help expand the range of financial services, as a  result of which the consumer will benefit. It will also contribute to  healthy competition in the market. The presence of such large  international players inspires confidence that the best international  experience will also be present in our country," V. Abrahamyan said.   Tian Erlong, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the  People's Republic of China to the Republic of Armenia, expressed  confidence that UnionPay's entry into Armenia will increase the flow  of tourists and clearly improve payment terms when traveling to Asia  and Armenia from China. "I think that the presence of UnionPay in  Armenia will make a significant contribution to the development of  economic and trade cooperation between the two countries," the  Ambassador emphasized.  According to the bank's press service,  UnionPay International (UPI) is a subsidiary of China UnionPay  (CUP).With UnionPay International cards payments can be made in 177  countries of the world, in 55 of which UnionPay cards are issued.

According to the issue No. 19 of the analytical review "Armenian  Banks in the Card Business" prepared by ArmInfo, ACBA-Credit Agricole  Bank is one of the three leaders in the total number of active cards  - over 219.6 thousand as of April 1, 2019. The bank holds a position  in TOP-3 in the total volume of plastic transactions - 257.7 billion  drams for 2018, and among the three leaders, the bank also figures in  the volume of ATM transactions - 190.3 billion drams for 2018.  ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank simultaneously with the issuance and  servicing of local cards ArCa issues and services international Visa  and MasterCard, along with this, since 2009, being an exclusive  partner of American Express in Armenia.  To recall, ACBA-Credit  Agricole Bank CJSC has been operating in Armenia since 1995. The  shareholders of the bank as of July 1, 2019 are: SJSC Sacam  International (a member of the Credit Agricole S.A group) - 5% and  ACBA Federation CJSC - 95%.