The launch is part of "Zuum", a new payment service offered by Telefónica's Vivo brand which aims to provide financial inclusion for the unbanked population of Brazil. Gemalto will also provide MFS with all the personalization services associated with EMV prepaid cards as well as tamper evident packaging and fulfillment to point-of-sale. With Vivo's huge coverage of over 90% of the Brazilian population, the service offers widespread accessibility for the vast majority of consumers.

Nearly 40 percent of Brazilians currently do not use banking services1. With "Zuum", Telefónica's Vivo customers will be able to set up a pre-paid account which can be accessed either through their mobile phone or a regular prepaid EMV MasterCard payment card, provided by Gemalto. "Zuum" will allow people to make secure, convenient financial transactions including peer-to-peer money transfers, merchant purchases, ATM cash withdrawal, bill payment, airtime top-ups and more. Cash can be transferred easily at mobile phone refill stations, supermarkets and newspaper stands. The physical card provided by Gemalto can be used to make purchases in Brazil at over 1.8 million EMV-enabled merchants and to withdraw money in ATMs.

"We relied on Gemalto to help us quickly launch the first of several innovative solutions that will allow mobile subscribers with or without bank accounts to make secure payment and money transfers conveniently with pre-paid m-payment services," said Marcos Etchegoyen, president of MFS. "Our goal is to promote financial inclusion for unbanked Brazilians and to extend secure payments via mobile devices to all consumers who seek alternative payment services with the lowest possible cost."

"Gemalto has been a major provider of secure payment cards and personalization services since the beginning of EMV migration in Latin America, with a strongly differentiated offer in Brazil, so we had the expertise to support MFS in achieving its ambitious financial services goals," said Eric Megret-Dorne, Senior Vice President of Secure Transactions at Gemalto Latin America. "The prepaid segment is advancing new business frontiers and the MFS project is in keeping with the trend towards the issuance of payment cards by a wide diversity of players."