Dubai: Apart from banks, payment services using the UAE’s new ‘Jaywan’ platform will be available through etisalat by e& and du, the country’s telecom giants with a sizeable presence in online transactions through their digital wallets.

This means that payments using Jaywan can be done at physical stores and also online as the scheme gets ready for full rollout to residents in the UAE.

The actual start of Jaywan transactions is set for some time during Q4-2024.

Jaywan – which is owned by Al Etihad Payments and part of the UAE Central Bank – serves the purpose of the country having its own domestic card scheme and a viable, lower cost option to the global giants.

“We already have on-boarded 26 banks and telcos that we serve here in the UAE,” said Nandan Mer, CEO of Network International, the Dubai-headquartered payment network operator. “We're ready for all our bank, fintech and telco customers to start issuing Jaywan cards whenever they believe is the right time for them to do that. And we hope that issuance will commence soon now that we know that there is going to be universal acceptance of Jaywan across the UAE.”

Banks in the UAE have already gone through the process of having their ATMs work on Jaywan cards. Next, they will start issuing Jaywan cards to their retail customers. Each bank will have its own schedule of how fast they need to move in getting these debit cards to all of their customers.