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Standard chartered makes it digitally innovative
Credit cards — in fact a way of borrowing and looks attractive when one goes to have one for purchasing goods and obtaining other services but however the attraction of the card evaporates as soon as it piles up the debt beyond ones capacity to payback.
It is a facility to be used productively for the good of the holder and not to get entangled into a debt trap. There are some risks of misuse of these cards if you lost the card somewhere, a large number of cases have been reported about the lost credit cards, frauds or misuse of these cards.
In our country, banks staff generally persuades potential clients for the sale of credit cards as this segment of the banking products is a good source of income for the bank. However there are certain complaints about the hidden charges of the credit cards, these hidden charges are not shared with the client at the time of entering into agreement with the bank, which some times lead to serious financial controversies between the customers and the bank. The banking industry will have to make things transparent about charges of using the credit cards to make it commercially viable products.
In many cases people afraid of having a credit cards as they believe they will have to pay whether you use the money or not. So there are pockets who flatly refuse to have a credit card.
While on the other hand there are people who always look for an opportunity of using the facility of having a credit card and after finishing the limit of the credit line either they deny to pay or enter into legal controversies as such people either have a poor source of income or they may have no source of regular income. It is not in Pakistan alone but there was a time that credit card business was reduced almost to non existence at one point of time in India and other countries because of irregularities found in the system. Now it has reemerged in Pakistan and elsewhere in the world.
The credit card facility could be helpful to those who have a predictable source of income to pay back the debt on time to avoid penalties, and those who have a control over their spending habits only.
Security measures
In order to provide security to the credit card holders the Standard Chartered Bank has taken an initiative to issue EMV Chip cards to ensure protection against the misuse of the cards.
Standard Chartered has signed an agreement for EMV Chip Card issuance system with InfoTel Pakistan, who is one of the leading solution providers in the area of transaction security and Internet security. They are well known in Pakistan financial industry for their specialised security solutions.
EMV Chip cards will provide Standard Chartered clients with the highest possible security; the embedded microchip contains encrypted information, which greatly reduces the possibility of theft of cardholder information. Cardholders continue to enjoy the global acceptability of the Standard Chartered brand, and can now transact with additional peace of mind.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Shezad Arif, Head of Retail Clients, Standard Chartered Pakistan said, “We are extremely pleased to launch another enhancement to our Retail Products. It is imperative for us to provide our clients with convenience of banking and at the same time also important to provide them with secure and accessible transactions.”
Speaking about the relationship, Mr. Riaz Siddiqui, CEO InfoTel noted “We are proud to have joined hands with Standard Chartered Pakistan for this implementation. Thales P3 technology will provide Standard Chartered’s clients with security, and provide Standard Chartered the flexibility to add new applications during the cards life time.”
Standard Chartered Bank (Pakistan) Limited is the oldest international bank in Pakistan. The Bank offers a complete range of credit cards ranging from Conventional and Islamic cards for retail clients and Corporate cards to Institutional clients. Our credit card products are designed to meet the lifestyle and travel related needs of clients by offering the most attractive rewards program in Pakistan.
The Governor State Bank of Pakistan Ashraf Mahmood Wathra during his visit to the opening a Standard Chartered Branch paid compliments to the Bank for pioneering the best-in-class digital capabilities in the Pakistani industry.
The Governor remarked that Pakistan’s branchless banking policy initiatives and businesses, have won global recognition. ‘Pakistan, today, is one of the largest potential branchless banking growth markets in the world and ranked among the top three along Brazil and Kenya,’ he said.
Mr. Ashraf Mahmood Wathra highlighted the robust growth of digital financial channel in Pakistan, which experienced 17 per cent growth in ATM network and 16 per cent growth in number of plastic cards. The Governor stated that increased usage of online banking services day by day indicates consumers trust on digital banking channels in the country.
Governor State Bank of Pakistan appreciated the efforts taken by Standard Chartered to promote digital banking in Pakistan by launching a fully digitally capable branch. He stated that conventional brick & mortar bank branch model is not sufficient to cater to the financial needs of the entire country’s population spread across vast area. Therefore, Alternate Delivery Channels like e-banking and mobile money are serving as emerging technological services that can extend the footprint of the banking channel to the farthest corners of the country.
The Governor was confident that SBP and the banking industry are fully synchronized to proceed in the right direction in creating a digital financial eco system, which would not only pave the way towards establishment of a Cash-Lite Society, but would also smoothen the path to achieve the strategic goal of broader national financial inclusion.
Commenting on the occasion, Shazad Dada, Chief Executive, Standard Chartered Pakistan said, “In line with global trends where client preference is continuously shifting towards digital channels as compared to a uni-dimensional brick and mortar setup, Standard Chartered has employed an integrated multi-channel strategy investing heavily in the digital space. I am proud that we have taken the lead in the Pakistan Banking industry, by offering digitally innovative solutions.”
Standard Chartered has always been at the forefront in launching technology solutions to provide convenience and improve client experience using channels of the future such as the Internet and the mobile phone. Standard Chartered’s mobile banking application.
