Ethiopa's Dashen Bank deploys ACI kit for EMV-compliant payments

25/05/2006

ACI Worldwide (Nasdaq: TSAI), a leading international provider of enterprise e-payment solutions, today announced it has enabled the deployment of VISA-certified, EMV-compliant debit and credit cards on behalf of Dashen Bank, the largest private bank in Ethiopia. The initial rollout of Point of Sales (POS) and ATMs will mark an industry first in the east African countries. The rollout will be supported by ACI software including BASE24®, ACI Card Management System™ and ACI Smart Chip Manager™.

The deployment, first announced in May 2005, will go live on 25th May, 2006. Dashen Bank, ACI, VISA and HP will be marking the occasion with a joint launch party to be attended by His Excellency Mr. Neway Kristos Gebreabe Special Economic advisor to the Prime Minister and Board Chairman of the National Bank of Ethiopia.

ACI's flagship BASE24 software will be used by Dashen Bank to authorise, route and switch both ATM and POS transactions across its network. ACI has enabled Dashen Bank to support all card types including credit, debit (chip and magnetic stripe) and allows the bank to interface with global card networks. ACI Card Management System will manage the card and merchant accounts, and related functions such as PIN mailer generation by issuing, maintaining account information and tracking card usage. ACI Smart Chip Manager will manage the chip personalisation process and the lifecycle of applications on the chip.

ACI has provided Dashen Bank with a solution that allows it to evolve as the Ethiopian smart card market develops. In addition to the initial functionality, Dashen Bank will be able to expand its customer offering to support new channels such as Internet and mobile for electronic payments as demand requires. In future Dashen Bank will be able to expand ACI's Smart Chip Manager solution with the functionality to manage the EMV application parameters and issue new applications on smart cards in the field, to enhance the cardholder service experience and provide greater convenience to customers.

Mr Lulseged Teferi, President of Dashen Bank said, "The rollout of smart cards for the first time ever in Ethiopia was a major undertaking. We needed a partner who could draw on vast experience to help ensure a smooth deployment and provide a true consulting role. ACI did exactly that and have provided us with a system which meets all our requirements and will provide robust and scaleable payments processing and card management."

Steve Wright, Vice President of Sales & Marketing at ACI Worldwide EMEA said, "This was a very exciting project to work on. Greenfield sites, such as Ethiopia provide a unique set of challenges, which we worked hard to overcome. We are confident that we have helped Dashen Bank deploy a truly world class card payment solution compliant with international card network standards and mandates and are proud in the part we have played in bringing smart cards to Ethiopia."

Source: ACI Worldwide