Thursday, December 5 2013 17:08
ARARATBANK starts issuing Diners Club cards
ArmInfo. ARARATBANK and Diners Club International Ltd. have announced the launch of issue of Diners Club (DC) cards in Armenia. The presentation took place on December 4.
Ashot Osipyan, CEO and Chairman of Board of ARARATBANK OJSC, told media that Diners Club Armeni , a franchise representation, will be set up in the future. It will have the right to use the relevant trademark and conduct business. The relevant agreement was signed in 2012.
Two types of DC cards will be issued - Diners Club Black and Diners Club Classic for VIP customers who travel a lot.
The first card is a co-branding card issued jointly with Austrian Airlines. The card enables the holders both in Armenia and other countries to make use of exclusive privileged tourism services, including preferential travel insurance, discounts and privileges in hotels, restaurants, shops, waiting rooms of the largest international airports. Osipyan said that ARARATBANK's holders of Diners Club International also have an opportunity to attend cultural events in different countries on preferential terms. "The cards are adjusted to the Armenian market and fully meet the demands of the Armenian cardholders. In addition, the terms can be worked out individually in compliance with the demands of a particular customer", said Osipyan. When commenting on ArmInfo's question, he pointed out that the Bank is going to issue 5 thsd DC cards annually.
Eduardo Tobon, President of Diners Club International, said that the launch of activities in Armenia is an important event for DC. When replying to ArmInfo's question, he said that the Armenian market is as promising for DC as the Chinese one, because it is the market capacity, not the market size that matters. He added that now DC has a strong partner - ARARATBANK and can implement joint interesting and large projects for the cardholders. Tobon does not rule out cooperation with other Armenian banks as well.
To note, in Armenia the local and international Diners Club cards will be served by ARARATBANK'S ATMs and over 1,000 trade outlets and service points.
Diners Club International (DC) is an international financial organization. It is among the top five payments systems of the world. DC was founded in 1950. The system provides high quality financial services in over 185 countries at over 20 mln trade outlets and service points. The system has more than 1 mln ATMs. The DC cards are the first multifunction cards in the world.
ARARATBANK is one of the dynamically developing banks of Armenia. As of 1 Oct 2013, its total capital amounted to $46.3 mln, assets - $259.8 mln, and net profit - $5.9 mln. The Bank has 45 branches. As of 1 Oct 2013, the number of the Bank's active cards (ArCa, Visa, MasterCard) exceeded 109,000. The Bank has 75 ATMs and 437 POS terminals.
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