Mastercard partners with Bankiom to introduce virtual prepaid cards in Gulf region

Mastercard has announced its partnership with Bankiom, a UAE-based lifestyle banking app. Through the collaboration, the payments giant intends to introduce digital payment cards across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. This will include countries like Bahrain, UAE, Oman, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.

Mastercard-Bankiom partnership

Among its goals, Mastercard is committed to boosting digitalization in Middle East’s payments landscape. As such, partnerships with fintech partners like Bankiom will be helpful for Mastercard.

Mastercard’s Executive Vice President Market Development, EEMEA, Amnah Ajmal stated, “The GCC alone has one of the world’s highest rates of internet penetration at 98% of the region’s population. Our partnership will help us leverage our innovative payment solutions to drive digital and financial inclusion across the region”.

Bankiom was founded in 2019 and launched in 2022 as a digital bank that allows its users to open a current bank account and download a prepaid payment card. It currently has over 30,000 verified users with a growth rate of about 20% weekly. At this pace, it is striving to reach one million users within the next three years.

It is not just a financial app but a platform that offers its users an array of services. In addition to the virtual app that allows one to complete online payments, one is also able to transfer funds securely and fast. It also allows for the connecting and managing of one’s bank accounts.

Through PuraVida and in partnership with Mastercard, Bankiom seeks to meet the evolving needs of the tech-savvy generation in the GCC region. Indeed, with regard to the collaboration in question, the firm’s founder, Danny Abla stated, “Bankiom is building a digital bank for that moment in your life where you want to live life to the max, and we’re calling it PuraVida…Our mission is to spread happiness through financial services; so partnering with Mastercard, especially with their Priceless brand, was a no-brainer for us.”