MEDIA RELEASE PR35403
Merchant Solutions Signs Acquiring Agreement with JCB International
SINGAPORE, July 15 /PRNewswireAsia-AsiaNet/ --
Merchant Solutions, the acquiring joint venture between global electronic
payments processor First Data and Standard Chartered Bank, has signed an
agreement to initiate merchant acquiring for JCB, a major global payment brand
originated in Japan.
The agreement spans eight markets in Asia and will enable JCB card members
to use their cards at thousands of purchase points in Hong Kong, Macau, China,
Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Merchant Solutions already enables merchants to accept Visa, MasterCard and
China UnionPay branded cards in many of these markets today, and they will now
be able to capture more business as JCB cardholders travel across Asia.
According to the Japan National Tourist Organisation (JNTO), in 2007
overseas visitors to other parts of Asia exceeded 13 million. More than half of
that number traveled to countries covered by the new arrangement between
Merchant Solutions and JCB International, a wholly-owned subsidiary of JCB Co.,
Ltd., a brand holder of JCB, and a major issuer and acquirer in Japan.
According to the JNTO, 1.3 million Japanese visitors traveled to Hong Kong
during 2008, and according to the Hong Kong Tourism board, they spent 3.5
billion Hong Kong dollars.
"Merchant Solutions is very pleased to expand its acquiring network to
include JCB cards," said Sean Hesh, CEO and managing director of Merchant
Solutions. "JCB is a major global payment brand with a solid card member base
in Asia. This arrangement delivers improved merchant coverage for JCB card
members and increases payment options for our merchants, helping to drive their
sales volumes."
"Our arrangement with Merchant Solutions is very exciting and will enhance
JCB's acceptance network further across Asia," said Kubo Masayuki, managing
director, JCB International (Asia) Ltd. "With Merchant Solutions, our card
members travelling across these Asian markets will be able to enjoy greater
convenience than ever before."
About JCB: For more information, please visit:
Media Contact:
Sandra Pang
Pronto Communications
Tel: +852-2540-6872
Email: prontopr@pacific.net.hk
SOURCE: Merchant Solutions
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