Beirut, Lebanon – 29 May 2016: Visa Inc., a global payments technology company, hosted the Lebanon Risk Forum in collaboration with the Central Bank of Lebanon, to discuss the latest trends in risk and security management for electronic payments.
The one-day forum highlighted the growing threats of fraud and data security affecting the industry, and showcased Visa’s role in the development of innovative security solutions to minimize security risks in online and face-to-face transactions. The forum was attended by senior leadership teams at Visa, and representatives of the Central Bank of Lebanon and leading banks in the country.
Ramzy Hamadeh, Executive Director, Head of Payment Systems Department at Banque du Liban, the Keynote speaker at the forum said: “Banque Du Liban, in its role to safeguard the economy and the banking sector, is trying its best to protect society from any financial risk and to promote the efficient and safe shift from cash to an electronic society within the existing laws. Accordingly, the BDL is and will always stress on consumer protection and satisfaction whenever using electronic means of payments within a compliant and risk free environment. Therefore, a continuous cooperation is needed between the regulators and the service providers and schemes. This Visa forum will surely highlight the awareness needed to protect against any potential risks”.
“Currently, we are working on launching The (PAY-GOV), a government payment system that is intended to facilitate government payments by allowing government institutions to make and receive payments in a secure and fast manner,” Hamadeh added.
Neil Fernandez, Head of Risk Services for MENA, Visa, said, “There is nothing more important to us than building and maintaining cardholder trust in Visa’s payment network. Cardholder security has always been at the heart of Visa’s strategy and we are committed to empowering our clients, partners and consumers everywhere to experience a secure and seamless payments experience. To ensure round-the-clock protection of our customers’ data, we have been actively involved in developing multi-layered security technologies that have kept fraud rates low, despite significant growth in transaction volumes.
Visa has been committed to collaborating and engaging with industry stakeholders, policymakers, law enforcement, and consumers in the Middle East to keep payments secure and prevent fraud, and is one of the safest and most trusted ways to pay and be paid.
Nabil Tabbara, General Manager Levant, Visa, said: “We believe that security is the foundation for innovation. As we develop new ways to pay with devices, apps, and consumer products, security cannot be an afterthought. Visa is completely aligned with the Middle East’s goal of being one of the first cashless societies of the world by accelerating the electronification of commerce, and it is our mission to make the region fraud-free.”