The agreement covers 10 African countries in which Barclays Africa has a presence and significantly expands the company’s presence across English speaking Africa.
Wang says the deal with Barclays Africa is a sign of the importance of China-Africa trade and investment flows. “Barclays Africa is the leading financial services provider of choice in Africa. Given the growing financial ties between China and Africa, this partnership will facilitate payments by our UnionPay cardholder base either resident in or visiting South Africa or the other countries where both parties have a presence, namely Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.”
Unlike more developed markets, Africa is largely cash-driven. Studies suggest that for every POS transaction in Africa, there are more than 25 cash transactions. Wang sees this as a huge opportunity. “There is tremendous room for growth across Africa, as we see more and more people switching from cash to other means of payment.”
UnionPay International, though relatively new to Africa, is a conglomerate in China and Asia, and is fast expanding beyond its Asian home base. Headquartered in China, it has made rapid inroads to the African market in the last six years. It was originally set up to service the growing number of tourist and business visitors from China who are UPI cardholders, but is now partnering with local banks to be able to issue cards to African customers.
“UPI’s success in Africa is largely due to their understanding of developing countries’ requirements. It differs from its competitors in several other aspects: for instance, it is a membership association which provides more growth and exposure opportunities for its members,” concludes Wang.]]>
