The Absa MasterCard Titanium card lets users choose whether to pay with their debit, credit or savings accounts at the point-of-sale. When they want to make a purchase, they simple insert their card into a conventional payment terminal and use the keypad to select the account.

The card also includes a button, which users press to create a unique pass code which appears on an LCD display screen and can be entered online to secure Web purchases at participating 3D Secure merchants.



Philip Panaino, division president, South Africa, MasterCard, says: "As consumers become increasingly tech savvy and desire quicker, safer, and more convenient payment solutions, MasterCard has harnessed the power of our existing cutting edge technologies to create an all-in-one payment card that makes payments easier for South Africans."

MasterCard recently teamed up with Belgium's Banca Monte Paschi Belgio on an identical card but says that the Absa offering is the first of its kind in Africa, the Middle East or Asia Pacific.

Separately, in the UK MasterCard has struck a deal with HSBC Merchant Services which will see the Global Payments unit become the country's first merchant acquirer to offer PayPass 3.0 processing to customers.

HSBC Merchant Services customers can now upgrade their terminals to accept MasterCard PayPass 3.0, which supports payments made via contactless card, NFC capable mobile phones, stickers and wristbands. The technology can also accept NFC payments over the current limit of £20 and support PIN entry on the mobile handset.

The upgrade is available to merchants using Ingenico iCT220 and iCT250 countertop terminals with P30CL PIN Pads. Transactions over £20 can be made where the cardholder authenticates the transaction by entering a PIN on their mobile phone and then tapping the handset on the terminal.