Visa/MasterCard-Equipped mPOS Lands In Middle East

Thales and Swiftch Deliver mPOS to UAE

Cybersecurity company Thales announced on Tuesday (May 31) that its payShield 9000 hardware security modules (HSMs) will be used by payments technology company Swiftch to help secure the first Visa Ready and MasterCard self-certified mPOS solution throughout the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

With the solution, merchants and acquirers of all sizes will be able to utilize the mPOS solution, which will offer end-to-end encryption of the payment data via Thales’ HSMs.

“The Swiftch application integrates payShield HSMs with mobile card readers from Miura to enable a point-to-point encryption (P2PE) zone to be established between the card acceptance point and the Internet-based payment gateway,” a statement from the companies explained.

Peter Galvin, VP of strategy for Thales e-Security, notes that mobile payment acceptance globally is predicted to see a 50 percent growth rate annually between now and the year 2020 but remarked on a gap that remains between the payment options available at terminals and mobile devices due to a lack of security technologies.

“Thales is working closely with innovators such as Swiftch to close that gap by delivering the same high levels of security to the mobile world as have become commonplace in the tradition[al] in-store fixed-terminal environment,” Galvin stated.

Aditya Anand, CEO at Swiftch, added:

“Taking card payments on the move, especially in places like street markets, restaurants or when making home deliveries, has always been a challenge. Our mPOS solution enables affordable on-the-go payments for merchants of any size or where home delivery drivers require payment on delivery. Hardware solutions are pivotal in making security viable in mobile environments, and Thales was an obvious … choice for us, offering a best-in-class solution with wider support and recognition in the payments market than any other provider.”