Visa confirms its entry into the Sudanese market
March 2, 2020 (WASHINGTON) – Visa inc. confirmed on Monday, that it started entering Sudan via the field of electronic payments, in a move that would give impetus to the steps aimed at ending the country’s isolation from the global banking system.
We are “Working closely with select financial institutions in Sudan to progress the introduction of Visa payment solutions in the country,” said the company, which is based in California, said in a statement to Sudan Tribune.
“Visa is pleased to be building new partnerships that will bring the benefit of Visa’s world-class payment technology to help support financial inclusion and economic growth in Sudan” added the world’s largest payments network
The director of the electronic banking services (EBS) at the Central Bank of Sudan Omar Amrabi revealed to Sudan Tribune last week that Visa authorized a license to several banks for the issuance of Visa cards.
Sudanese officials have long complained that their presence on the US list of states that sponsor terrorism make global companies unwilling to operate in the country for fear of the risk fines even though the U.S. in 2017 lifted comprehensive economic sanctions it imposed nearly two decades ago.
The Sudanese Minister of Finance Ibrahim Al-Badawi told a news conference in Khartoum a few weeks ago that Sudan was talking to the U.S. about Citibank entering the country and about enabling the use of smart cards and ID cards to manage cash transfers,
In a job posting published several months ago, Visa announced it is hiring a Cairo-based regional manager, whose job responsibilities would include “Understand[ing] clients strategies, priorities, needs and business processes for the new market entry to Sudan”.
(ST)