Visa has partnered with UAE-based NymCard to launch a plug-and-play end-to-end issuance platform as part of Visa’s Ready to Launch program. Visa launched the Visa Ready to Launch (VRTL) program to provide fintech and non-banking entities with a seamless experience in issuing payment products.

NymCard is the first Middle East and Pakistan area BaaS participant to join the VRTL program and improve payment credentials issuance capabilities for fintech through a plug-and-play end-to-end platform in the region. As fintech and non-banking entities encounter challenges when trying to launch new payment programs, partnering with several players in the ecosystem, including Bank Identification Number (BIN) sponsors, issuer processors, Know Your Customer (KYC), and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) partners represents a necessity for multi-market penetration. Technological, operational, and commercial enablement are problematic to attain in the marketplace as the card enablement environment remains divided.

VRTL undertakes these challenges by providing end-to-end credentials issuance capability through product bundling, program management, and scalable tech integration platforms via APIs. The process is simplified with the One Contract, One Pricing, and One Integration approach, reducing the Go to Market (GTM) timelines, an important factor for startups. The partnership’s objective is to improve the overall capability and to ensure that the onboarding experience for fintech and non-banking entities will be immediate.

According to the UAE Visa’s representatives, VRTL effectively bundles products and services for fintechs to seamlessly launch payment programs. Moreover, the program wants to introduce simplified pricing, singular contracting, and ideal integration, which represent the foundation of a rapid launch. The fintech enablement program is currently available in the Gulf Cooperation Council and North Africa, Levant, and Pakistan regions, and is projected to be expanded to Central Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Visa’s program aims to transform the client onboarding for financial services and solutions by moving from the current approach of manual selection to a One-and-Done approach, with pre-designed bundles of in-house and outsourced solutions. The bundled solutions include card issuance, BNPL, multicurrency, and gift cards. About NymCard NymCard is a payments platform, present in the Middle East and North Africa, enabling businesses to launch new payment offerings including prepaid, charge, and credit cards, multi-currency offerings, and BNPL services. Back in June 2023, the company acquired Spotii, a BNPL company, to extend customised BNPL services to its customers.

Through the acquisition, Spotii’s technology, customers, and merchants merged with NymCard’s Baas and card issuing platform, therefore expanding the latter’s range of services to include credit-on-demand offerings for financial institutions, banks, retailers, fintechs, and end customers. Western Union partnered with NymCard in October 2022 to allow fintechs and financial institutions in the UAE to provide international money transfers through the former’s platform. .