Mahindra Comviva Launches First-Ever EMV Cards In Zimbabwe

Mahindra Comviva on Tuesday (Nov. 11) debuted a new service to be called ConnectMoney Service Manager, courtesy of a deal with a Zimbabwe company called Econet Wireless. The company said that it’s the largest rollout of secure EMV chip and PIN payment cards in Zimbabwe and it’s also the first time that MasterCard debit cards are available to consumers using mobile money services in Africa.

As part of the deal, Econet is issuing MasterCard debit cards that are linked to the EcoCash Wallet.

EcoCash account holders will receive MasterCard debit cards allowing users to transact at POS terminals and also to withdraw cash via ATM machines accepting MasterCard, locally and internationally. ConnectMoney Service Manager also offers virtual cards on request. The virtual card number is delivered through an SMS, which is accepted for payments across all e-commerce websites. The virtual card is directly connected to the mobile money account of the subscriber, the company said.

“Electronic payments acceptance is crucial to the Zimbabwean economy. It is imperative to provide convenient and integrated solutions to the consumers,” said Srinivas Nidugondi, Senior VP and Head Mobile Financial Solutions, Mahindra Comviva. “ConnectMoney Service Manager will provide seamless interoperability with heterogeneous systems and services.”