Dubai, April 2019, areeba won the Seamless Award for “Best technological innovation in payments, B2C-Vendor”, for its biometric card, during an award gala ceremony held in parallel with the Seamless Middle East exhibition, on April 10, 2019. This prize recognizes the company’s efforts in bringing the most innovative technological payment advancement to banks in the region.
The card was launched last April 2018, at Seamless Middle East, as areeba partnered with digital security world leader Gemalto and biometric technology company Zwipe, to pilot Visa’s first battery-less dual interface biometric payment card (chip- and contactless-enabled) in the Middle East, aiming to use the fingerprint recognition as a more convenient and secure alternative to PIN or signature to authenticate the cardholder during a transaction.
Commenting on this achievement, Ramzi Saboury, CCO of areeba, said: “We are proud to see the company’s commitment to investing in new technologies that deliver faster, easier & more secure payment solutions recognized. This is one of the many innovations that areeba is pioneering and implementing, with the collaboration of leading financial and payment technology companies, on the road to empowering a cashless world”.
On this occasion, André Løvestam, CEO of Zwipe, said: “We are very pleased to see the hard work of so many strong partners being recognized and we are confident that our first impactful collaboration with areeba will enable strong adoption of biometric payment cards in the Middle East and support more secure and convenient payments.”
Joseph Ridley, General Manager, Terrapinn Middle East, organizer of Seamless Middle East, commented: “For 19 years, Seamless Middle East has always endeavored to and invested in bringing the brightest minds from across the global fintech and payments ecosystem together here in Dubai. The Seamless Awards aims to identify and reward companies and individuals who have demonstrated an unparalleled ability to succeed, continually set standards of excellence and who will be the future stars of the industry. On behalf of Terrapinn Middle East, we would like to extend our congratulations to areeba and their partners for their continuous commitment to growth, innovation and success in the industry.”
Nabil Tabbara, General Manager for Levant, Visa, said: “Visa is a technology company and we are constantly evolving to provide innovative, immersive, and collaborative experiences for our clients and partners. We are proud of this award as it is a testament to the success of our first battery-less dual interface biometric payment card (chip- and contactless-enabled) in the Middle East. As the payments industry shifts from plastic to digital, we continue to work with our clients to provide secure and convenient technology that more and more consumers across the region want.”
About areeba
areeba is a financial technology company that aims to improve businesses by providing smarter, faster and seamless payment solutions for banks, merchants, governments and individuals. areeba is fully regulated and licensed as a financial institution by the Central Bank of Lebanon. It is a principal member of the Mastercard and Visa network, and has a strategic partnership with American Express.
For more information, visit www.areeba.com, or @areebalebanon on LinkedIn, Facebook or Instagram. areeba media contact: Nouchka El Hage, 01-954325 – [email protected]
About the Seamless Awards
The Seamless Awards are the leading awards for the payments, e-commerce and retail industry. The event’s mission is to identify and reward those companies and individuals who have demonstrated an unparalleled ability to succeed, continually set standards of excellence and who will be the future stars of the industry. Seamless Awards runs alongside the 19th annual Seamless Middle East conference and exhibition which attracts over 10,000 attendees each year.
About Zwipe
Zwipe is a technology company that is making biometrics easy by developing and commercializing award-winning biometric authentication solutions for three key areas: payment, access control, and ID. Zwipe’s versatile technology works with customers’ existing infrastructure and systems without the need for external databases, functioning with and without the need for batteries. The enhanced security enabled by biometrics coupled with the convenience of contactless provides the ideal platform for a next-generation smart card that also addresses the privacy concerns widely prevalent today. To see how Zwipe makes biometrics easy, visit zwipe.com.
About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit www.visamiddleeast.com, www.visanewsmena.tumblr.com or follow us on Twitter @Visamiddleeast.