After Central Bank Endorsement, Iraqi Bank Agrees to Trial Zwipe’s Biometric Tech

Another Iraqi bank is planning to pilot biometric card technology from Zwipe, further cementing the company’s strong position in the country.

The National Bank of Iraq is one of the biggest private banks in the country, with 19 branches across Iraq’s major cities. And it will be trialing fingerprint-scanning payment cards based on the Zwipe Pay platform starting in the summer of this year.

The trial will once again entail a collaborative effort between Norway-based Zwipe and Areeba, its local partner for issuing, processing, and acquiring services, with the two companies having first teamed up in 2020.

For the bank, the pilot represents an opportunity to demonstrate its innovation in the financial services sector, suggested National Bank of Iraq CEO Ayman Abu Dhaim.

“We are very pleased to partner with Zwipe, a leading technology brand in biometric payment cards globally, and Areeba, a leading payment service provider in the region,” he said. “We are keen to be amongst the first banks in the region to introduce this world-class innovation, ensuring that our customers are extremely well protected when using payment cards while enjoying a great user experience.”

The development notably comes after the Central Bank of Iraq officially endorsed Zwipe as a vendor of innovative financial technology at the start of this year. Duha Al Atta, the Central Bank’s General Manager, specifically encouraged banks “to pilot innovations from Zwipe, assess the end users’ feedback and bring biometric payment cards to Iraq in 2022.”

“I am pleased that our collaboration with the Central Bank of Iraq has encouraged leading Iraqi issuers such as NBI to embrace next-generation payment cards,” commented Ramzi Saboury, Zwipe’s General Manager for the MENA region. “With 40 million inhabitants and 7 million payment cards, expected to grow to more than 10 million over the next 4 years according to the World Bank, Iraq represents a significant growth opportunity for Zwipe in the Middle East.”

Saboury was appointed to his role in April of 2021, and has since played a key role in establishing Zwipe’s presence in the region.

The company named a new Chief Strategy and Product Officer, former IDEMIA executive Patrice Meilland, last week.

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April 4, 2022 – by Alex Perala