China Union Pay services start in Myanmar

China Union Pay and Myanmar Payment Union began offering payment services to foreign nationals on February 23, government officials announced at a press conference at Sedona Hotel on the same day, following a Memorandum of Understanding signed on November 24.


Union Pay is China’s largest banking card service, launched in 2002. It operates under People’s Bank of China and it can be used in 141 countries and regions worldwide, representatives announced at the conference.

Union Pay occupies the most shares in the world payment card market, officials added.

U Than Nyein, chairman of Myanmar’s Central bank, said that local banks need to upgrade payment systems in anticipation of hosting the Southeast Asian Games in December 2013.

“We have to try to make our payment systems more secure in the trading sector and services sector,” he said.

MPU is a cooperation of three state-owned banks and 14 private banks. In September 2012, each member bank provided MPU with K20 million (about US$23,000) – a total of K340 million (about $4 million) – to establish 198 ATMs and 465 points of sales throughout Myanmar, MPU officials announced at the press conference.

“We would like to help strengthen MPU. Myanmar is an important market in Southeast Asia because of its new reforms and spike in tourists since 2013, so we need to keep up a modernised payment system,” said Yang Wen Hui, Southeast Asia’s chief representative for Union Pay.

U Ye Min Oo, secretary of MPU’s Management Committee, said at the press conference that Japanese Credit Bureau will begin payment services in Myanmar this March. MPU and JCB signed an MoU in November 2012.

source: The Myanmar Times
http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/4206-union-pay-services-start.html